RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS

IN THE MATTER OF:	DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2021-00457

XXXXXXXXXXXX	COUNSEL:  NONE

(AKA) XXXXXXXXXXX	HEARING REQUESTED:  NO

APPLICANT’S REQUEST

1.  The name on his DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, be changed to reflect his current legal name.

2.  His discharge be upgraded to honorable based on the repeal of Section 654 of Title 10, United States Code (10 U.S.C. § 654).

APPLICANT’S CONTENTIONS

He was discharged in 1987 [sic] due to sexual orientation.  The law has changed so that sexual orientation is no longer considered a discharge offense.  He would like his discharge type to be upgraded to honorable.

The applicant’s complete submission is at Exhibit A.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The applicant is an honorably discharged Air Force airman first class (E-3).

The applicant served in the Regular Air Force from 17 Oct 85 to 21 Jul 88, under the name DKG.  

On 21 Jul 88, the applicant received an honorable discharge.   His reentry code is 2C and his separation code is HRB.  He was credited with 2 years, 9 months, and 5 days active service. 

On 9 Nov 20, the applicant obtained a court order to change his name to IAN.

For more information, see the excerpt of the applicant’s record at Exhibit B.

APPLICABLE GUIDANCE

Consistent with recommendations of the Air Staff and the Office of the Secretary of Defense Separations Standardization Working Group, the Board has established a precedent of granting requests for post-service name changes under the following conditions:  (1) the applicant’s name was changed as part of a transgender transition or the applicant is seeking to revert to a maiden name or the name under which he or she entered service; and (2) the change is supported by a court order, a divorce decree, or birth certificate (True Copy Raised Seal, Notarized, or official digital document with electronic signature); (3) the change is made only to the DD Form 214; and (4) the Board has not already granted a name change for the applicant.

SAF/MR memorandum, Guidance to the Air Force Board for Correction of Military Records, dated 9 Mar 15, states that while the Board generally has the authority to correct an applicant’s records to reflect a legal change to the applicant’s name, it should exercise discretion in doing so.  The DD Form 214 is primarily created for the benefit of the veteran to establish entitlements to various government programs, or in seeking employment with organizations that grant veteran’s preferences.  A DD Form 214 may constitute an injustice when the veteran asserts that presenting a DD Form 214 that lists the old name effectively requires a needlessly intrusive explanation of personal history.  This type of injustice may arise in situations such as when the name change is transgender-related or associated with a divorce.

A complete copy of the SAF/MR memorandum is at Exhibit C.

APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF APPLICABLE GUIDANCE

The Board sent a copy of the SAF/MR memorandum to the applicant on 9 Sep 21, for comment (Exhibit D), but has received no response.

APPLICABLE AUTHORITY

On 20 Sep 11, with the repeal of the law commonly known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT), 10 U.S.C. § 654, the Department of Defense (DoD) issued supplemental policy guidance on correcting military records of former service members who had been discharged under that law or a precursor.  The guidance applied to the following types of requests:  changing the narrative reason for a discharge; re-characterizing service as honorable; changing a reentry code to one allowing immediate eligibility to reenter service.  The guidance directed that such requests should normally be granted when both of the following conditions are true:  (1) the original discharge was based solely on DADT or a similar policy in place prior to enactment of DADT; and (2) there were no aggravating factors in the record, such as misconduct.   For meritorious cases, the guidance further directed the use of “Secretarial Authority” as the new narrative reason for separation, with Separation Program Designator (SPD) code “JFF” and reentry code “1J.”  Finally, the guidance noted that while each request must be evaluated individually, an honorable or under honorable conditions (general) discharge should normally be considered to indicate the absence of aggravating factors.

The complete DoD policy is at Exhibit E.

APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF APPLICABLE AUTHORITY

The Board sent a copy of the DoD policy to the applicant on 9 Sep 21, for comment (Exhibit F), but has received no response.

FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION

1.  The application was timely filed.

2.  The applicant exhausted all available non-judicial relief before applying to the Board.

3.  After reviewing all Exhibits, the Board concludes the applicant is the victim of an injustice.  The Board finds a preponderance of the evidence substantiates the applicant’s contentions in part.  Specifically, while the Board finds no error in the original discharge process, the Board recommends relief based on the repeal of 10 U.S.C. § 654.  The absence of aggravating factors in the applicant’s record meets the criteria of the DoD policy on records correction following the repeal of DADT.  Although the applicant requests his discharge be upgraded to honorable, the Board notes the applicant’s DD Form 214 reflects he received an honorable character of service at the time of discharge; therefore, the only action required on this portion of his request is to change the reentry code, separation code and narrative reason for separation based on the repeal of 10 U.S.C. § 654.  However, regarding the applicant’s request to change the name on his DD Form 214, the Board finds the applicant has not established that presenting his DD Form 214 with the previous legal name effectively requires a needlessly intrusive explanation of personal history and the Board finds no basis to recommend granting that portion of the applicant’s request.  Therefore, the Board recommends correcting the applicant’s record as indicated below.

RECOMMENDATION

The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force relating to APPLICANT be corrected to show the DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, issued in conjunction with the 21 Jul 88 discharge, be amended to reflect a Separation Code of JFF a Narrative Reason for Separation of Secretarial Authority, and a Reenlistment code of 1J.  

However, regarding the remainder of the applicant’s request, the Board recommends informing the applicant the evidence did not demonstrate material error or injustice, and the application will only be reconsidered upon receipt of relevant evidence not already considered by the Board.

CERTIFICATION

The following quorum of the Board, as defined in Air Force Instruction (AFI) 36-2603, Air Force Board for Correction of Military Records (AFBCMR), paragraph 1.5, considered Docket Number BC-2021-00457 in Executive Session on 2 Dec 21:

, Panel Chair 
, Panel Member
, Panel Member

All members voted to correct the record.  The panel considered the following:

Exhibit A:	Application, DD Form 149, w/atchs, dated 13 Nov 20.
Exhibit B:	Documentary Evidence, including relevant excerpts from official records.
Exhibit C:	Memorandum, SAF/MR, dated 9 March 2015.
Exhibit D:	Notification of Memorandum, SAF/MRBC to Applicant, dated 9 Sep 21.
Exhibit E:	DoD Policy on Correcting Military Records after Repeal of DADT, 20 Sep 11.
Exhibit F:	Notification of DoD Policy, SAF/MRBC to applicant, dated 9 Sep 21.

Taken together with all Exhibits, this document constitutes the true and complete Record of Proceedings, as required by AFI 36-2603, paragraph 4.11.9.