ADDENDUM TO
                            RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:                       DOCKET NUMBER: 98-01124
                                        INDEX CODE 108.03  108.10
                                        COUNSEL:  None

                                        HEARING DESIRED:  No

_________________________________________________________________

RESUME OF CASE:

The applicant had been  honorably  discharged  from  Basic  Military
Training (BMT) on 5 December 1975 for disqualifying  mild  sustained
hypertension, a  condition  determined  to  have  existed  prior  to
service (EPTS) and not aggravated by service. In his 20  April  1998
appeal  to  the  AFBCMR,  the  applicant  requested  his   honorable
discharge be changed to a medical disability discharge. He contended
that the medical  problems  which  disqualified  him  for  continued
service and the physical and mental conditions he suffers from today
are the result of beatings he allegedly received from his BMT  drill
instructor.  On 16 March 1999, the Board considered and  denied  the
applicant’s appeal due to lack of evidence. A copy of the Record  of
Proceedings is attached at Exhibit H.

He  has  since  submitted  numerous  letters,  some  of  which  were
addressed to various  government  officials  and  forwarded  to  the
AFBCMR, asking  for  reconsideration  on  the  basis  of  additional
documents included with his letters.  The  applicant’s  brother,  an
Individual  Mobilization  Augmentee  in  the  Air  National   Guard,
forwarded a supporting statement indicating he  has  spoken  to  two
individuals who witnessed the alleged assault and that  his  brother
would not lie about being beaten. Also provided was a statement from
an individual who asserts he saw  a  drill  instructor  assault  the
applicant and “signed a police report on this matter in 1975 for the
airforce police.”

All of these letters, with their attachments, are at Exhibit I.

Based on the two above-mentioned supporting statements,  the  AFBCMR
staff attempted to obtain a report of the alleged assault.  However,
the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) advised  that
they had no record of the incident and if there had
been an investigation, the report  would  no  longer  exist  because
files of this nature are  routinely  destroyed  after  15  years  in
accordance with established procedures.

_________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

We have carefully reviewed the  applicant’s  numerous  reconsideration
submissions, as well as the  supporting  statements  provided  in  his
behalf.   However,  the  applicant’s  current  physical   and   mental
conditions do not appear to be the result of an  assault  by  his  BMT
drill instructor in 1975.  The applicant’s early discharge  was  based
on the  finding  of  persistent  mild  hypertension,  a  disqualifying
condition determined to have existed prior to his entry on active duty
and not to have been aggravated by the  service.  The  report  from  a
psychiatrist contained in the original appeal and the latest documents
appear incompatible  with  the  evidence  of  record  surrounding  the
applicant’s service time. While he was profiled  for  hypertension  as
well as costochondritis, his medical records do not appear to  reflect
any treatment for traumatic abuse or injuries.  The applicant has  not
provided persuasive evidence that he was, in fact, assaulted and  that
it was the causal effect of his medical problems while on active  duty
or after his separation. Therefore, we find no compelling  basis  upon
which to overturn our original conclusion that this  appeal  does  not
merit relief.

_________________________________________________________________

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 17 June 1999, under the  provisions  of  AFI  36-
2603:

                  Mrs. Barbara A. Westgate, Panel Chair
                  Mr. Lawrence R. Leehy, Member
                  Ms. Melinda J. Loftin, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

   Exhibit H.  Record of Proceedings, dated 16 Apr 98, w/atchs.
   Exhibit I.  Applicant's Letters (8), dated 24 & 25 Apr 99,
                  5 & 19 May 99, w/atchs; Brother’s Letter, dated
                  18 May 99; R--- E---’s Letter, dated 10 May 99;
                  Mother’s Letter dated 24 Apr 99;

.




                                   BARBARA A. WESTGATE
                                   Panel Chair


                            RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

                                  Apr 16 1999
IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  98-01124

            COUNSEL:  None

            HEARING DESIRED:  No

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His 1975 discharge be changed to a medical disability discharge.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He was beaten up by his drill instructor. As a  result,  he  sustained
back  troubles,  nerve  damage,  schizophrenia,  post-traumatic-stress
disorder, hearing loss, costochondritis, blistered feet and high blood
pressure. His discharge was a cover-up and is not consistent with  the
actual medical records/treatments/diagnoses.

Applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A.

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant was honorably discharged  on  5  December  1975  with  a
reenlistment code of “4K” (Applicable physical standards are not met).

Pursuant  to  the  AFBCMR  Staff’s  request,  the  Federal  Bureau  of
Investigation, Washington, DC, provided an investigative report, which
is attached at Exhibit C.  The  report  indicates  the  applicant  was
convicted in 1978 of burglary and  murder  committed  in  1977.  After
appealing, his sentence  was  reduced  to  20  years.   He  apparently
escaped from the Adult Correction Institute (ACI) and was arrested  as
an escapee from ACI in December 1980.

The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application, extracted
from the applicant's military records, are  contained  in  the  letter
prepared by the appropriate office of  the  Air  Force.   Accordingly,
there is no need to recite these facts in this Record of Proceedings.

_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The AFBCMR Medical Consultant reviewed this appeal and indicates  that
applicant’s allegation that he suffered physical trauma  with  lasting
psychiatric disturbance during his one-month basic  military  training
(BMT) service is not borne  out  by  evidence  of  record.  His  early
discharge was based on the finding of persistent mild hypertension,  a
condition that was felt to have existed prior to  service  (EPTS)  and
which  was  disqualifying  for  service.  A  24-page  report  from   a
psychiatrist dated  11  May  1998  was  found  incompatible  with  the
evidence of record surrounding the applicant’s service time. As  there
is no error or injustice occurring in the disposition  of  this  case,
denial is recommend.

A copy of the complete evaluation is at Exhibit D.

The Chief, Physical Disability Division, HQ AFPC/DPPD, also  evaluated
the case and advises that a medical evaluation board  (MEB)  diagnosed
mild  sustained  hypertension  and  recommended   the   applicant   be
discharged by reason of physical disability for a condition determined
to have EPTS. The MEB determined the condition had not been aggravated
by the service. A voluntary discharge on the member was initiated  and
effective on  5  December  1975  for  his  failure  to  meet  physical
standards for enlistment. The Chief finds no errors  or  injustice  to
warrant changing the  applicant’s  records  and  he  agrees  with  the
Medical Consultant’s advisory. The applicant  has  not  submitted  any
material showing he was unfit due to a  physical  disability  acquired
while entitled to basic pay under the provisions of Title 10, USC,  at
the time of his discharge. Denial is recommended.

A copy of the complete evaluation is at Exhibit E.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The applicant responded with letters to the  Medical  Consultant,  the
AFBCMR, AFPC/DPPD, and the Secretary of the Air Force. He contends the
Air Force is still covering up [the mistreatment he sustained  at  the
hands of his drill instructor] and the diagnosis of his actual medical
condition. He warns that “heads  will  roll”  if  the  matter  is  not
cleared up.

A complete copy of applicant’s responses,  with  attachments,  are  at
Exhibit G.

_________________________________________________________________

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.  After a thorough review
of the evidence of record  and  applicant’s  submission,  we  are  not
persuaded his  1975  discharge  should  be  changed  to  a  disability
discharge. Applicant’s contentions are duly noted; however, we do  not
find  these  uncorroborated  assertions,   in   and   by   themselves,
sufficiently persuasive to override the rationale provided by the  Air
Force. Other than his own statements, he provides no evidence that  he
suffered physical trauma at the hands of his  drill  instructor  which
left lasting psychiatric disturbances and/or physical disability.  The
MEB recommended the applicant be discharged from the service by reason
of physical disability for a  condition  determined  to  have  existed
prior to  service  and  which  was  not  aggravated  by  the  service.
Therefore, we agree with the recommendations and rationale of the  Air
Force that the applicant has failed to sustain his  burden  of  having
suffered either an error or an injustice. In view  of  the  above  and
absent persuasive evidence to the  contrary,  we  find  no  compelling
basis to recommend granting the relief sought.

_________________________________________________________________

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 16 March 1999 under the  provisions  of  AFI  36-
2603:


                 Mrs. Barbara A. Westgate, Panel Chair
                 Mr. Lawrence R. Leehy, Member
                 Ms. Melinda J. Loftin, Member







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. Letter, FBI Report.
   Exhibit D. Letter, AFBCMR Medical Consultant, dated 26 Aug 98.
   Exhibit E. Letter, HQ AFPC/DPPD, dated 28 Sep 98.
   Exhibit F. Letter, AFBCMR, dated 12 Oct 98.
   Exhibit G. Letters (7), Applicant, dated 15, 16, and
                28 Oct 98, w/atchs.


                                           SIGNED

                                   BARBARA A. WESTGATE
                                   Panel Chair