AIR FORCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD DECISIONAL DOCUMENT  
	CASE NUMBER

 FD-2021-00530

The applicant was discharged on 5 May 2015 in accordance with AFI 36-3208 with an Under Other Than Honorable Conditions discharge for in lieu of trial by court-martial.  The applicant appealed for an upgrade of his discharge characterization to Honorable and a change to the discharge narrative reason.  The Board was conducted on 9 December 2021.

The applicant was offered a personal appearance before the Discharge Review Board (DRB), but declined and requested the board be completed based on a records only review.  The applicant was represented by counsel.    

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 deny the applicant’s request to upgrade his discharge characterization to Honorable, to change the discharge narrative reason to Secretarial Authority, and to change the reenlistment eligibility code to 2C or 3K.

DISCUSSION:  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.  

Through counsel, the applicant contended the discharge was improper because the chain of command made an error of discretion for discharging him based on civilian criminal charges that were later dropped. The applicant asserts that the local county district attorney elected to not pursue prosecution of criminal charges against the applicant and dropped the charges due to lack of evidence.  Thus there was no basis for the chain of command to pursue his discharge.  Furthermore, the applicant contended the discharge was inequitable as the vast majority of his career was served honorably and with excellence.

A review of the record revealed the applicant was investigated by civilian authorities for an alleged sexual assault.  The evidence indicates the local district attorney’s office did not pursue prosecution and the Air Force Office of Special Investigation assumed responsibility for the case.  Court-martial charges were preferred by the applicant’s command and he in turn requested, and was approved for a discharge in lieu of trial by court-martial.  

The Board concluded that the applicant made an informed decision when he requested the discharge in lieu of trial by court-martial.  The misconduct identified as the grounds for the administration action cause the negative aspects of the applicant’s service to outweigh the positive contributions he made in his Air Force career.  The Board reviewed the entire record and found no evidence of impropriety or inequity to warrant an upgrade of the discharge.  

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 16 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)