RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
         AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  98-01117
            INDEX NUMBER:  110.00; A91.06
            COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED:  YES

___________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His 23 December 1958  bad  conduct  discharge  (BCD)  be  upgraded  to
honorable.

___________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

His court-martial for insubordination was wrong.  The only reason  for
it was that he told all of the officers in command that all  they  did
was sit behind a desk all day and only fly four hours a month so  they
could get their flight pay.

Applicant’s request is at Exhibit A.

___________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

Applicant contracted his initial enlistment in the Regular  Air  Force
on 25 June 1952 for a period of four years.  During this enlistment he
attained the rank of airman first class (E-4).  On 9 July 1955, he was
convicted by a summary court-martial of being disorderly in  a  public
place.  He was sentenced to 30 days of restriction  to  the  base  and
forfeitures of $55.  The record reflects that during  this  enlistment
he received two “Excellent” character and efficiency ratings, and  one
Airman Performance Report (APR) with an overall rating of “Very Good.”
 On 16 September 1955, he was honorably discharged for the purpose  of
immediate reenlistment.  He was credited with 3 years, 2  months,  and
22 days of active service.

On 17 September 1955, he reenlisted for a period of six years.   Prior
to the events under review, he attained the rank  of  staff  sergeant.
On 15 February 1958, he  received  nonjudicial  punishment  under  the
provisions of Article 15, UCMJ,  for  writing  an  insufficient  funds
check.  Punishment consisted  of  a  reduction  in  grade  from  staff
sergeant to airman first class.  The record reflects he  received  two
APRs during this enlistment with overall ratings of “Good.”

On 15 August 1958, the applicant pled guilty and was  convicted  by  a
General Court-Martial of 13 specifications of larceny in violation  of
Article 121 of the Uniform  Code  of  Military  Justice  (UCMJ).   The
larceny charges all relate to 13 bad checks  the  applicant  wrote  to
various businesses both on and off base  between  29  March  1958  and
28 April 1958, totalling approximately $280.  Applicant was  sentenced
to a bad conduct discharge, forfeitures  of  $70  per  month  for  six
months, and six months of confinement at hard labor.  The sentence was
affirmed on 15 December 1958.

On 23 December 1958, he was discharged with a bad  conduct  discharge.
He was credited with 2 years, 10 months, and 28 days of active service
during this  enlistment  (excludes  131  days  of  lost  time  due  to
confinement).

Pursuant to the Board’s request, the Federal Bureau of  Investigation,
Clarksburg, West Virginia, provided a copy of an investigation report,
which is attached at Exhibit C.

___________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The Associate Chief, Military Justice Division,  AFLSA/JAJM,  reviewed
the available records and  concluded  that  administrative  relief  by
their office is not possible.  There are  no  legal  errors  requiring
correction.  JAJM recommended that the Board interpose the statute  of
limitations or, if the statute of  limitations  is  waived,  that  the
application be denied on its merits.

JAJM stated it is apparent the applicant does not remember that he was
court-martialed for writing bad checks  rather  than  insubordination.
No significant legal errors occurred  during  the  applicant’s  court-
martial.  The applicant pled guilty.  His plea and sentence were later
affirmed on appeal.  The only error that may have occurred is that the
applicant was sentenced  to  a  BCD.   The  applicant’s  DD  Form  214
characterizes the applicant’s service as an administrative under other
than honorable conditions discharge  as  opposed  to  a  punitive  bad
conduct discharge.  By today’s standards, writing $280  worth  of  bad
checks may not seem serious enough to warrant a trial by general court-
martial.  However, this offense occurred in 1958 when the value  of  a
dollar was worth a  lot  more.   Considering  this,  as  well  as  the
applicant’s prior disciplinary history, trial by general court-martial
was appropriate in his case.  A  BCD  is  not  inappropriate  for  the
offenses the applicant committed.

The complete evaluation is at Exhibit D.

___________________________________________________________________




APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the  applicant  on
28 September 1998 for review and comment within 30 days.  As  of  this
date, no response has been received by this office.

On 6 November 1998, the AFBCMR offered the applicant an opportunity to
provide information pertaining to his  activities  since  leaving  the
service.  As of this date, no response  has  been  received  from  the
applicant.

___________________________________________________________________

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.  Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the
existence of probable error or injustice.  We found no  evidence  that
the applicant’s court-martial action  and  subsequent  discharge  were
improper or contrary to the provisions of the governing regulations in
effect at the time.  Although the offenses committed by the  applicant
were serious, we believe that he has been appropriately  punished  and
that no useful purpose will be served by the continued  imposition  of
the   bad   conduct   discharge.    We    therefore    believe    that
recharacterization of his discharge to general is appropriate  on  the
basis  of  clemency.   Noting  evidence  in  the   record   of   other
disciplinary problems during the  period  under  review,  we  are  not
persuaded that further  relief  in  the  form  of  a  fully  honorable
discharge is warranted.  Therefore, we recommend that the  applicant’s
records be corrected as indicated below.

___________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT:

The pertinent military records of the  Department  of  the  Air  Force
relating to APPLICANT, be corrected to show that on 23 December  1958,
he  was  discharged  with  service  characterized  as  general  (under
honorable conditions).

___________________________________________________________________

The following members of the  Board  considered  this  application  in
Executive Session on 14 January 1999, under the provisions of AFI  36-
2603:



      Ms. Martha Maust, Panel Chair
      Mr. Jackson A. Hauslein, Member
      Ms. Ann L. Heidig, Member

All members  voted  to  correct  the  records,  as  recommended.   The
following documentary evidence was considered:

     Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 20 Apr 98, w/atchs.
     Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
     Exhibit C.  FBI Report of Investigation.
     Exhibit D.  Letter, AFLSA/JAJM, dated 1 Sep 98.
     Exhibit E.  Letter, SAF/MIBR, dated 28 Sep 98.
     Exhibit F.  Letter, AFBCMR, dated 6 Nov 98.




                                   MARTHA MAUST
                                   Panel Chair



AFBCMR 98-01117




MEMORANDUM FOR THE CHIEF OF STAFF

      Having received and considered the recommendation of the Air
Force Board for Correction of Military Records and under the authority
of Section 1552, Title 10, United States Code (70A Stat 116), it is
directed that:

      The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air
Force relating to[APPLICANT], be corrected to show that on 23 December
1958, he was discharged with service characterized as general (under
honorable conditions).






            JOE G. LINEBERGER
            Director
            Air Force Review Boards Agency