THIRD ADDENDUM TO RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-1994-02998 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: YES ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: 1. Her records be corrected as follows in accordance with the previous SAF/MRB directives issued in her case: a. Her Officer Performance Reports (OPRs) rendered for the periods 7 Jun 89 through 6 Jun 90 and 7 Jun 90 through 6 Jun 91 and all associated attachments be removed from her records as directed in AFBCMR 94-02998. b. Completion of all actions associated with her transfer to the Air Force Reserve on 12 May 94 and subsequent promotion to the grade of lieutenant colonel (Lt Col/O-5) in accordance with the 17 Jan 96 SAF/MRB directive. c. Her records be considered by a Special Review Board (SRB) to the grade of Lt Col for Fiscal Year (FY) 94/95, as directed by the 17 Jan 96 SAF/MRB directive. d. All evidence of her being twice passed over for promotion to the grade of Lt Col, discharged from the Air National Guard (ANG) in Dec 95, and retired as a major in Jun 96 be removed from her records. 2. She be provided comprehensive reconsideration of her case and granted the following relief: a. Her records be corrected to reflect she was promoted to the grade of Lt Col, effective and with a date of rank of 8 Jan 90, in line with other Active Guard/Reserve (AGR) rated officers in her squadron. b. Her records be corrected to reflect she was promoted to the grade of colonel (O-6) when she was first eligible (1994). c. Her records be corrected to reflect she was not released from her AGR position on 12 May 94, but continued to serve in the Air Force Reserve in flying status until being retired in Apr 2004 at her mandatory separation date (as a colonel), with full back pay, allowances, flight pay, and any applicable special flight or retention bonuses. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: 1. Portions of AFBCMR Directives dated 17 Jan 96 and 1 Oct 96 were not accomplished: a. Her two OPRs, rendered for the periods ending 6 Jun 90 and 6 Jun 91 were not voided and removed from her records in accordance with the directives issued by the AFBCMR. Her non-selection during the 2009 recall of rated officers may have been due to the presence of these unjust documents in her record. b. She was not transferred to the U.S. Air Force Reserve (USAFR) on 12 May 94 in accordance with these directives and, thus, was ineligible to do anything other than await separation. c. Her corrected records were not considered by a Special Review Board (SRB) for the Fiscal Year (FY) 1994 Reserve of the Air Force Lt Col Selection Board, as recommended by the Board. Her records show she was a non-select to Lt Col in FY94/95. d. AFBCMR 94-02998 was “unattainable” without further Board guidance, and was not properly implemented. Her records were not properly updated to include removal of information reflecting (1) her non-selection to Lt Col, (2) her MSD to major, (3) her separation orders, (4) and her retirement orders. 2. She should be granted a comprehensive reconsideration of her case. While the evidence had been provided in support of her requests, it was probably reviewed piecemeal and in such a manner as to prohibit appropriate consideration and fair decisions. Board members must revisit the evidence submitted with her initial submission and follow-on addendums in total so the injustices may be entirely examined and her service record be corrected accordingly. Further, the supporting documentation provided by Air Force evaluators in her previous three applications to the AFBCMR, as described in the 17 Jan 96 record of proceedings (ROP) and the 4 Oct 96 and 9 Feb 00 addenda, were not properly reviewed for truth and compliance with law before being accepted as fact. Inclusion of potentially incorrect information made the evidentiary record unfair. While these documents had been created to establish cause for her separation, they evidenced a discriminatory line of thinking; however, it appears as though these documents were accepted in the 17 Jan 96 ROP and its addenda as true and factual without consideration of her additional evidence refuting their veracity. These errors in fact recorded in the original ROP, coupled with an unbalanced presentation, were used to evaluate the case and provide a false and erroneous foundation for addenda evaluations. The applicant's complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit AA. ________________________________________________________________ RESUME OF CASE: On 8 Aug 95 and 7 Dec 95, the Board considered the applicant’s requests to be reinstated into a full-time AGR position in the ANG or equivalent position; be reinstated into a flying position; have her OPRs rendered for the periods closing 6 Jun 90 and 6 Jun 91 be declared void and removed from her record; and, she be promoted to the grade of Lt Col, effective 8 Jan 90, with back pay and allowances. The AFBCMR issued AFBCMR Directive 94-02998 (Corrected Copy), dated 17 Jan 96, directing the two contested OPRs be declared void and removed from her records; her records be corrected to show she was not released from her AGR position on 12 Jul 91, but continued to serve until 11 May 94, at which point she would have attained 20 years of total active federal military service (TAFMS); on 12 May 94, she was released from her AGR tour and transferred to the Reserve; and, her corrected records be considered for promotion to the Reserve grade of Lt Col by SRBs for the Fiscal Years (FYs) 95 and 96 Reserve of the Air Force Lt Col Selection Boards. For an accounting of the facts and circumstances surrounding the applicant’s original request and the rationale of the earlier decision by the Board, see the Record of Proceedings (ROP) at Exhibit K. By virtue of a letter, dated 20 May 96, the applicant’s counsel requested the applicant’s records be corrected to show she was promoted by unit vacancy. In addition, the SRB previously directed in the 17 Jan 96 AFBCMR directive had convened and determined the applicant should have been recommended for promotion by the FY95 Reserve Air Force Lt Col Board. The AFBCMR issued another directive, dated 1 Oct 96, directing that upon Senate confirmation, the applicant’s records be corrected to show she was promoted to the Reserve grade of Lt Col, with an effective date and promotion service date of 16 Mar 95. For an accounting of the facts and circumstances surrounding the applicant’s original request and the rationale of the earlier decision by the Board, see the Addendum to the ROP at Exhibit N. By virtue of a letter, dated 14 Nov 97, the applicant noted that she was a Lt Col with 20 years of active service, promoted while in a non-recognized reserve status and retired before completing three years time-in-grade; and, her record still contained inaccurate and unjust command documents (i.e., Letters of Admonishment (LOA) and Counseling (LOC)) and the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) investigation which were used as the basis of her separation and termination of her AGR position. In view of this, she requested these documents be removed from her records and she be returned to active duty and transferred to Reserve status on 12 May 94. In the alternative, she requested she be credited with active service for the period 12 May 94 through 31 Dec 95 and granted a waiver to the time-in-grade requirement to allow retirement in the grade of Lt Col. The AFBMCR notified the applicant in a letter, dated 9 Feb 2000, there was insufficient evidence of an error or injustice to warrant corrective action, and her application was denied. For an accounting of the facts and circumstances surrounding the applicant’s original request and the rationale of the earlier decision by the Board, see the Second Addendum to the ROP at Exhibit Z. ________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: ARPC/DPTG recommends correcting the applicant’s record to reflect her retired grade as Lt Col and that she receive all associated compensation and entitlements retroactive to her effective retirement date of 1 Jun 96. With regard to the 17 Jan 96 AFBCMR Directive, ARPC complied with the portion relative to the removal of the contested OPRs. Additionally, in compliance with AFI 36-2406, Officer and Enlisted Evaluation Systems, ARPC replaced the voided reports with Air Force Forms 77 to document the administrative gap created. These forms were prepared on 10 May 96 and added to the applicant’s official record in the Automated Record Management Systems (ARMS) on 22 May 96. ARPC also complied with the provisions of the directive related to her continuation on AGR status until 11 May 94 by adjusting her ANG/USAFR Point Credit Summary to show she served in said status through 11 May 94. In doing so, the applicant became qualified for an active duty retirement as of that date. However, ARPC did not take action at the time on the provisions of the directive related to transferring her to the Reserve because the applicant was still participating as a traditional member of the ANG; the ANG is considered part of the Air Reserve Component and it’s officers have Reserve commissions and their appointments are governed by AFI 36-2005, Appointment in Commissioned Grades and Designation and Assignment in Professional Categories—Reserve of the Air Force and United States Air Force. Had ARPC transferred the applicant into the Reserve at that time, she would have gone into the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR), which is comprised of Participating (Points Only) and Non-Participating members. Regardless, the applicant would not be in a participating status for pay unless she found a valid position. Additionally, the applicant referred to an understanding that transferring from the ANG into the Air Force Reserve would reset her promotion; however, this is not the case because statuses are tied together for promotion consideration. As for the last part of the 17 Jan 96 directive pertaining to providing the applicant an SRB, ARPC convened an SRB to review the applicant’s updated records on 10 Jun 96, after the applicant’s effective retirement date of 1 Jun 95. As a result, the applicant was recommended for promotion, prompting the 1 Oct 96 directive to be issued directing her records to be corrected to reflect she was promoted to Lt Col with an effective promotion date of 16 Mar 95. ARPC published a promotion order, Reserve Order BA—209, dated 8 Apr 97, promoting the applicant effective 16 Mar 95. Additionally, the National Guard Bureau (NGB) published Special Order AP-119, dated 19 Apr 10, federally recognizing the applicant’s promotion to Lt Col with the same effective date of rank. Because the applicant was promoted to Lt Col with an effective date of 16 Mar 95, recommend her retired rank be adjusted. A complete copy of the AFPC/DPTG evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit AB. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATIONS: She again presents a chronological history of events associated with her career, reiterates the contentions presented in her original application, and takes exception to many of the statements made in the Air Force advisory. She was not transferred to a viable position with the Reserve in accordance with the 17 Jan 96 AFBCMR directive, given counseling, or afforded the opportunity to elect her own status. Her return to duty on 12 May 94 was required to implement the 17 Jan 96 AFBCMR directive. She became a Lt Col as of 16 Mar 95, yet remained retired as a major. She should receive full service credit/pay as a Lt Col as of the effective date of her 16 Mar 95 promotion. At a minimum, she should be restored to duty giving her a fair opportunity to become a colonel, and have her records corrected so as to convey the resultant pay and benefits. She also submitted explanations of personnel programs effective in 1990 and resubmitted a letter from her counsel from 20 May 96. (Exhibit AC). ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. After careful consideration of applicant’s request and the evidence of record, we find the application is untimely filed. The Board directive which serves as the basis for the applicant’s most recent request was issued on 1 Oct 96. The applicant’s last application to the Board concerning the issues at hand is dated 14 Nov 97. On 9 Feb 00, the Board notified the applicant she had submitted insufficient evidence of an error or injustice to warrant corrective action and that the Board decision did not preclude an additional request of reconsideration. Thus, the applicant was fully aware of the status of her military record and any perceived error or injustice in February 2000, and from that point had a three-year time period in which to file an application for reconsideration. The applicant’s current application is dated 18 Jan 12, some 16 years after the issuance of the first directive in her case and almost 12 years after the Board notified her their 9 Feb 00 decision did not preclude her from requesting reconsideration. It is clear the applicant did not file within three years after the alleged error or injustice was discovered, as required by Title 10, United States Code, Section 1552 and Air Force Instruction 36-2603, nor has she shown a sufficient reason for the delay in filing. Although this Board has, in the past, gone to great lengths to provide relief to applicants, recent Congressional mandates have limited the Board’s latitude--including the Board’s mandate to process 90 percent of its cases within 10 months and to allow the processing of no case to exceed the 18-month point. The time it takes to process an application is no longer an infinite resource. See United States v. Keane, 852 F.2d 199, 205 (7th Cir. 1988)(“We live in a world of scarcity, one in which that most inflexible commodity, time itself, sets a limit on our ability to prevent and correct mistakes.”) Therefore, we do not find a sufficient basis to waive the failure to timely file and consider the case on its merits. 2. We are also not persuaded the record raises issues of an error or an injustice that warrant further action on part of the Board. The Board acknowledges the Air Force did not complete all required implementation actions in response to the 1 Oct 96 issuance of AFBCMR 94-02998; however, the Air Reserve Personnel Center (ARPC) is administratively correcting the applicant’s record by voiding and removing the orders retiring her in the grade of major and replacing them with orders retiring her in the grade of Lt Col, and are ensuring the applicant’s records are free of inappropriate documents. ARPC’s administrative action will result in the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) reviewing the applicant’s records to determine if she is entitled to any monetary benefits as a result of the correction of records. However, regarding the remainder of the applicant’s requests for relief, further relief beyond the stated administrative actions is not warranted because the application is untimely filed. 3. The applicant's case is adequately documented and it has not been shown that a personal appearance with or without counsel will materially add to our understanding of the issues involved. Therefore, the request for a hearing is not favorably considered. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT: The application was not timely filed and it would not be in the interest of justice to waive the untimeliness. It is the decision of the Board, therefore, to reject the application as untimely. ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered the applicant’s request for reconsideration of AFBCMR Docket Number BC-1994-02998 in Executive Session on 22 May 13, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: Panel Chair Member Member The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit Z. Second Addendum to Record of Proceedings, dated 9 Feb 00. Exhibit AA. DD Form 149, dated 18 Jan 12, w/atchs. Exhibit AB. Letter, ARPC/DPTG, undated. Exhibit AC. Letter, AFBCMR, dated 10 Apr 13. Exhibit AD. Letter, Applicant, dated 10 May 13. Panel Chair