AIR FORCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD DECISIONAL DOCUMENT  
	CASE NUMBER

 FD-2021-00099	
					
The applicant was discharged on 26 Apr 17 in accordance with AFI 36-3208 with a General discharge for Secretarial Authority.  The applicant appealed for an upgrade of his discharge characterization to Honorable and a change to the reenlistment eligibility code.  

The applicant appeared and testified before the Discharge Review Board (DRB), with counsel, via video teleconference using Zoom on 11 May 21.  No witnesses were present to testify on the applicant’s behalf.  

Pursuant to 10 USC §1553, the board included a member who is a psychiatrist/ psychologist with training on mental health issues connected with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or traumatic brain injury (TBI), and training on mental health disorders.

The attached examiner’s brief (provided to applicant only), extracted from available service records, contains pertinent data regarding the circumstances and character of the applicant’s military service. 
  
FINDING:  The DRB voted unanimously deny the applicant’s request to upgrade his discharge characterization to Honorable and to change the reenlistment eligibility code to 2C / 3K.

The DRB, under its responsibility to examine the propriety and equity of an applicant’s discharge, is authorized to change the characterization of service and the narrative reason for discharge if such changes are warranted.  If applicable, the board can also change the applicant’s reenlistment eligibility code.  In reviewing discharges, the board presumes regularity in the conduct of governmental affairs unless there is substantial credible evidence to rebut the presumption, to include evidence submitted by the applicant.  The Board completed a thorough review of the circumstances that led to the discharge and the discharge process to determine if the discharge met the pertinent standards of equity and propriety.  

The applicant’s record of service included several Letters of Reprimand and a couple of Letters of Counseling.  His misconduct included: Tardiness on several occasions; late to report to CC for previous tardiness; third room inspection failure in 6 months; dereliction of duty/multiple infractions; Third hair out of regulation violation; insubordinate/argumentative and used disrespectful language towards NCO.

Due to evidence of  post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and mental health conditions found in the applicant’s medical record, the Board considered the case based on the liberal consideration standards required by guidance from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness and/or 10 USC §1553.

The applicant and counsel state that the member began to have behavioral health problems. They state he began to hear voices and was experiencing difficulty at work. They explain that he sought medical help but was discharged for minor infractions. They state that command failed to properly evaluation his diagnosis and erroneously discharged him. They state that there was a rush to judgement that there was a problem that could not be fixed. The member and counsel conclude that the General discharge does not serve a further purpose and the events that took place are no longer relevant in the member’s life.

The DRB reviewed the applicant’s entire service record and found no evidence of impropriety or inequity to warrant an upgrade of the discharge.  The Board understood the applicant’s present service characterization renders him ineligible for Department of Veterans Affairs education benefits.  However, this is not a matter of inequity or impropriety which would warrant an upgrade. The Board concluded the negative aspects of the applicant’s service outweighed the positive contributions he made during his Air Force career. The characterization of the discharge received by the applicant was deemed to be appropriate.

After a thorough review of the service record and input from the Board’s psychiatrist/ psychologist, the DRB found that some of the applicant’s mental health condition was a mitigating factor to the applicant's misconduct, however, it could not completely explain or excuse the misconduct sufficiently to warrant upgrading the discharge. During the Personal Appearance, the DRB noted several inconsistencies in the applicant’s statements and could not make the connection between the mental health issues and the misconduct. 

The Board recommends the applicant exercise his right to directly appeal the DRB’s decision to the Air Force Board for Correction of Military Records by requesting clemency based on post-service activities and accomplishments.

CONCLUSION:  
The Board found insufficient evidence of an inequity or impropriety that would warrant a change to the applicant’s discharge.  Therefore, the discharge received by the applicant was deemed to be appropriate and his request was not approved. 

The DRB results were approved by the board president on 27 May 21.  If desired, the applicant can request a list of the board members and their votes by writing to:  

Air Force Review Boards Agency
Attn: Discharge Review Board
3351 Celmers Lane
Joint Base Andrews, NAF Washington, MD 20762-6602  

Instructions on how to appeal an AFDRB decision can be found at 
https://afrbaportal.azurewebsites.us

Attachment:
Examiner's Brief (Applicant Only)