AIR FORCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD DECISIONAL DOCUMENT  
	CASE NUMBER

FD-2022-00138	
					
SUMMARY:  The applicant was discharged on 17 October 2017 in accordance with AFI 36-3208 with a General discharge for Misconduct (Minor Infractions).  The applicant appealed for an upgrade of his discharge characterization.

The applicant was not represented by counsel.    

The applicant requested the board be completed based on a records only review.

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. 

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.  

The applicant’s record of service included an Article 15 and multiple Letters of Reprimand.  His misconduct included:  dereliction of duty, failure to go, and failure to maintain standards. 

The applicant contended that his mental health condition was not taken into consideration when he was discharged from the service.  He claimed he did not receive proper medical attention while in the service and is now being treated by the VA for multiple conditions including PTSD, schizophrenia, and depression.  

A review of the applicant’s record revealed he had multiple disciplinary infractions over the course of a year and was discharged for misconduct.  He submitted his VA disability rating letter and has been rated at 100% for schizophrenia.

LIBERAL CONSIDERATION:

Due to evidence of a mental health condition found in the applicant’s medical record, the Board considered the case based on the liberal consideration (LC) standards required by guidance from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness and 10 USC §1553.  The Board included a member who is a physician, clinical psychologist, or psychiatrist.  Specifically, the Board reviewed the four questions the Under Secretary of Defense provided that boards should consider when weighing evidence in requests for modification of discharges due in whole or in part to mental health conditions, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI); sexual assault, and sexual harassment.  The Board considered the following: 

1. Did the veteran contend that a condition or experience may have excused or mitigated their misconduct or discharge?  
The applicant checked the box for “other mental health” on his application.  He stated in his application when he was attached to his last unit he believed his career could have progressed positively had he been retained in the Air Force and received proper medical attention and treatment for his mental health conditions.  

2. Did that condition exist/experience occur during military service? 
Based on a review of the applicant’s records, there is evidence the applicant sought and received treatment for difficulty sleeping during his time in service.  There is no evidence the applicant received any mental health treatment during his time in service.  There is also no evidence the applicant endorsed any clinically significant indicators of PTSD, or any other mental health condition during his time service. 

3. Does that condition or experience actually excuse or mitigate the discharge? 
Based on the available evidence and records, the applicant’s mental health condition developed post-service. There is no evidence or records during the applicant’s time in service that he endorsed or exhibited any clinically significant indicators of schizophrenia, or any other mental health condition.  

The VA, operating under a different set of laws than the military, is empowered to offer compensation for any medical or mental health condition with an established nexus to military service, without regard to its impact on a member’s fitness to serve, the narrative reason for release for service, or the length of time that has transpired since the date of discharge.  The VA may also conduct periodic reevaluations for the purpose of adjusting the disability rating as the level of impairment from a given condition may improve or worsen over the life of the veteran.  At the “snapshot in time” of the applicant’s service, there is no evidence the applicant had schizophrenia, or any other mental health condition, that caused or mitigated the misconduct which led to the applicant’s discharge.  

The Board acknowledged the significant decompensation in the applicant’s mental health and status as documented in the applicant’s post-discharge VA treatment notes.  However, at a “snapshot in time” of the applicant’s service, there is no evidence to suggest the applicant exhibited any mitigating mental health symptoms that would have resulted in screening for psychosis, or that his mental health had decompensated to an unfitting mental health condition.  Furthermore, the record revealed the applicant’s mental health symptoms started after he was discharged, and he wasn’t diagnosed with any condition until at least two years later.  Therefore, the DRB concluded there was no evidence the applicant was displaying early manifestation of a mental health condition while in the service and found no nexus between his misconduct and his later diagnosis.   

4. Does that condition or experience outweigh the discharge? 
Because the applicant’s condition does not mitigate his discharge, it does not outweigh his discharge. 

Additionally, the Board considered the factors laid out in the attachment to the Under Secretary of Defense memorandum, Guidance to Military Discharge Review Boards and Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records Regarding Equity, Injustice, or Clemency Determinations, dated 25 June 2018, known as the “Wilkie Memo.”  The Board considered the factors listed in paragraphs (6)(a)-(6)(l) and  (7)(a)-(7)(r) of this memorandum and did not find any evidence of error or impropriety.  Therefore, the DRB found the applicant’s contention without merit.

FINDING:  The DRB voted unanimously to deny the applicant’s request to upgrade his discharge characterization to Honorable.  The DRB also voted unanimously to deny changing the discharge narrative reason to Secretarial Authority, and to changing the reenlistment eligibility code to 2C or 3K.
 
CONCLUSION:  After a thorough review of the available evidence, to include the Applicant’s issues, summary of service, service/medical record entries, and discharge process, the Board found the discharge was proper.  Therefore, the awarded characterization of service, the narrative reason for separation, and the reentry code will not change.  The AFDRB results were approved by the board president on 22 July 2022.  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)