AIR FORCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD DECISIONAL DOCUMENT  
	CASE NUMBER

 FD-2021-00350	
					
The applicant was discharged on 31 January 2009 in accordance with AFI 36-3209 with a General discharge for Discharge in the interest of national security.  The applicant appealed for an upgrade of his discharge characterization to Honorable, a change to the discharge narrative reason, and a change to the reenlistment eligibility code.  The Board was conducted on 21 December 2021.  

The applicant was represented by counsel.    

The applicant appeared and testified before the Discharge Review Board (DRB), with counsel, via video teleconference using Zoom on 21 December 2021.  A witness was present and testified on the applicant’s behalf. 

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 to approve the applicant’s request to upgrade his discharge characterization to Honorable. It voted 2 to 1 to approve changing the discharge narrative reason to Secretarial Authority. It voted unanimously to deny an upgrade to the reenlistment eligibility code.

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 represented by counsel contended that the member was erroneously separated with “Discharge in the interest of national security”.  The applicant stated that his overall service record at the time of separation and conduct post discharge are deserving of an Honorable characterization of service. The applicant stated that he completed his program with Green Path Debt solutions and the only issues were making sure his financial obligations were taken care of. He stated that there was no reason that the discharge was a General characterization. 

During the Personal Appearance, the applicant and witness were sworn in under oath. Their contentions were that there is no proof that the applicant was a threat to national security. They also stated that he was never notified of a security clearance review nor did he have an opportunity to rebut the withdrawal of his security clearance. Additionally, they stated that the applicant had served over 12 years, in three different branches of the military, without misconduct, other than the debt issue. The witness was the applicant’s supervisor during the applicant’s service. He stated that the applicant was great to work with and had no issues other than the debt. He also highlighted that the applicant was in financial counseling as well as working with a debt service company to pay down his debt. 

CONCLUSION:  
The DRB conducted a thorough review of the service record and considered the testimony that the applicant provided.  The Board found neither the evidence of record, nor that provided by the applicant substantiated any inequity.  However, sufficient evidence existed to convince the board the discharge was improper.  Therefore, the Board determined the overall characterization of the applicant’s service was more accurately reflected by an Honorable discharge and the discharge narrative reason was more accurately described as “Secretarial Authority.”  The Board did not change the reenlistment eligibility code.    

The DRB results were approved by the board president on 21 December 2021.  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)