RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  98-03511
                             INDEX CODE: 110.00

                             COUNSEL: None

                             HEARING DESIRED: No


_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His general discharge be upgraded to honorable.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

While stationed at Wallace Air Base  in  the  Philippines,  he  displayed  a
serious error in judgment  and  smoked  marijuana.   Although  this  was  an
isolated incident on an otherwise unremarkable disciplinary record,  he  was
discharged.  At the time of this infraction, he was a stupid,  brash  twenty
year old.  He made a mistake that has continued to haunt him  for  the  past
twelve years.  When he thinks of the things he has  accomplished  since  his
discharge, they somehow seem diminished because of his folly.   He  has  put
himself through school and received degrees first  in  Respiratory  Therapy,
then in a Physician Assistant program.  He worked full time to pay  his  way
and graduate both programs at the top of his  class.   He  now  works  as  a
Physician Assistant in a large family practice.  He  has  been  married  for
seven years and has a five-year old daughter.  He has  avoided  use  of  all
drugs including alcohol and has become a respectable contributing member  of
society.  He humbly requests that  his  discharge  be  upgraded  so  he  can
experience some closure on that time in his life.

In support of his request, he submits Respiratory Therapist certificate,  an
Associate of  Applied  Science  for  Physician  Assistant  certificate,  and
letter of recognition.

Applicant's complete submission is attached at Exhibit A.

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The relevant facts  pertaining  to  this  application,  extracted  from  the
applicant’s military records, are contained in the brief
prepared by the Air Force Discharge Review Board  (AFDRB)  (Exhibit  C)  and
the letter prepared by the appropriate office of the Air Force (Exhibit  D).
 Accordingly, there is no need to recite  these  facts  in  this  Record  of
Proceedings.

Applicant’s request for an upgrade of discharge was denied by the  AFDRB  on
12 September 1989.

Pursuant to the  Board’s  request,  the  Federal  Bureau  of  Investigation,
Washington, D.C., indicated on the basis of the  data  furnished  they  were
unable to locate an arrest record (Exhibit F).

_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The Military Personnel Mgmt  Spec,  Separations  Branch,  Dir  of  Personnel
Program Management, AFPC/DPPRS, reviewed this application  and  states  that
the case has been reviewed  for  separation  processing  and  there  are  no
errors or  irregularities  causing  an  injustice  to  the  applicant.   The
discharge complies with directives in effect at the time of  his  discharge.
The records indicate member’s military service was reviewed and  appropriate
action was taken.  The applicant did not identify  any  specific  errors  in
the discharge processing nor provide facts that warrant an  upgrade  of  his
discharge he received.  Accordingly, they recommend  denial  of  applicant's
request.

A complete copy of the Air Force evaluation is attached at Exhibit D.

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APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

On 3 May 1999, a copy of the Air  Force  evaluation  was  forwarded  to  the
applicant for review and response within 30  days.   As  of  this  date,  no
response has been received by this office.

_________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

1.    The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing  law  or
regulations.

2.    The application was not timely filed; however, it is in  the  interest
of justice to excuse the failure to timely file.

3.    Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to  demonstrate  the
existence of probable error or injustice.  We find  no  impropriety  in  the
characterization of applicant's  discharge.   It  appears  that  responsible
officials applied appropriate standards in effecting the separation, and  we
do not find persuasive evidence that pertinent regulations were violated  or
that applicant was not afforded all the rights  to  which  entitled  at  the
time of discharge.  We conclude, therefore, that the  discharge  proceedings
were proper and characterization of the discharge  was  appropriate  to  the
existing circumstances.

4.    We also find insufficient evidence to warrant  a  recommendation  that
the discharge be upgraded on the basis  of  clemency.   We  have  considered
applicant’s overall quality of service, the events  which  precipitated  the
discharge, and available evidence related  to  post-service  activities  and
accomplishments.  On balance, we do not believe that clemency is warranted.

_________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:

The applicant be notified that the evidence presented  did  not  demonstrate
the existence of probable material error or injustice; that the  application
was denied without a personal appearance;  and  that  the  application  will
only be reconsidered  upon  the  submission  of  newly  discovered  relevant
evidence not considered with this application.

_________________________________________________________________

The following members of the Board considered this application in  Executive
Session on 5 October 1999, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

                  Mrs. Barbara A. Westgate, Panel Chair
                  Mr. Edward Parker, Member
              Mr. Patrick R. Wheeler, Member
                  Ms. Gloria J. Williams, Examiner (without vote)

The following documentary evidence was considered:

      Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 15 Dec 98, w/atchs.
      Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
      Exhibit C. AFDRB Brief, dated 12 Sep 89.
      Exhibit D. Letter, AFPC/DPPRS, dated 8 Apr 99.
      Exhibit E. Letter, AFBCMR, dated 3 May 99.
      Exhibit F. FBI Report w/d.




                                BARBARA A. WESTGATE
                                Panel Chair