RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER: 01-02031

            COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED:  NO


_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His bad conduct discharge (BCD) be upgraded.

_________________________________________________________________

THE APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He is not proud of the fact that he received a BCD and if  he  could  do  it
all over again, it would not have happened.

The applicant states that when he got out of the  service  he  made  up  his
mind to straighten up and stay  out  of  trouble.   He  has  stayed  out  of
trouble since his discharge.  He was  18  years  old  at  the  time  of  his
discharge and did not know any better.

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

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant enlisted in the Regular Air Force  on  25  June  1956,  for  a
period of six years.

He was absent without leave (AWOL) from 24 April to 5 May 1957.

The applicant was tried by a special court-martial on 2 August 1957 for  the
violating Article 123 and 134  of  the  Uniform  Code  of  Military  Justice
(UCMJ) based on the following:

      a.    On or about 7 January 1957, with intent to defraud,  he  falsely
made in its entirety and dispatched to  the  addressee,  a  certain  letter,
which would if  genuine,  apparently  operate  to  the  legal  prejudice  of
another.




      b.    On or about 21 March 1957, he wrongfully and unlawfully  secrete
one letter addressed to another individual, one  postal  card  addressed  to
another individual, and one circular addressed to another individual,  which
said mail matter had  previously  been  committed  to  the  custody  of  the
applicant as Unit Mail Clerk, for delivery  to  the  said  addressee  before
delivery to the persons to whom is was directed.

      c.    On or about, 28 March 1957, he wrongfully and  unlawfully  stole
and opened a certain letter  addressed  to  the  Commander,  506th  Tactical
Hospital, Tinker AFB.

      d.    On or about, 15 December 1956 to 1 June 1957, he wrongfully  and
dishonorably failed to pay a debt to a service station in the sum of  $64.45
for merchandise received, which amount was due and payable on  or  about  15
December 1956.

The applicant pled guilty to all of the specifications and charges  and  was
found guilty of all charges  except  the  21  March  1957  charge.   He  was
sentenced to be discharged from the Air Force with a BCD, forfeiture of  $50
a month for six months, and to be confined at hard labor for six months.

The sentence was adjudged on 3 July 1957 and the  applicant  was  discharged
with a bad conduct discharge (BCD) on 3 December 1957.  He completed  1 year
and 20 days of active service, with 142 days of lost time.

Pursuant to the Board’s request, the Federal Bureau of Investigation  (FBI),
Clarksburg, West Virginia, provided  an  Investigative  Report  that  is  at
Exhibit F.

_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPPRS recommends the application  be  denied.   AFPC/DPPRS  states,  in
part, that the discharge was consistent with the procedural and  substantive
requirements of the discharge regulation.  Additionally, the  discharge  was
within the sound discretion of the discharge authority.  The  applicant  did
not submit any new evidence  or  identify  any  errors  or  injustices  that
occurred in the discharge  processing.   He  has  provided  no  other  facts
warranting an upgrade of the discharge.

The AFPC/DPPRS evaluation is at Exhibit C.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The applicant states that he has nothing more  to  present  towards  getting
his discharge upgraded.

In further support of the appeal, the applicant submits a copy of  a  letter
sent to his Congressman and an extract from his court-martial.

The applicant’s complete response, with attachments, is at Exhibit E.

A copy of the FBI Investigative Report was forwarded to the applicant on  29
March 2002 for review and response.  The Board also  invited  the  applicant
provide additional evidence pertaining to his post-service activities.

In a letter, dated 15 April 2002,  the  applicant  states  that  he  has  no
excuse for the way he acted while in the service and to this  day  does  not
understand why he acted the way he did.  He does not contend that the court-
martial was unfair, only that his discharge should be upgraded since he  has
stayed out of trouble since his discharge.

In further support  of  the  appeal,  the  applicant  submits  documentation
regarding his post-service activities.

The applicant’s complete response, with attachments, is 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.     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.
Considered alone, we conclude the  discharge  proceedings  were  proper  and
characterization  of  the  discharge  was  appropriate   to   the   existing
circumstances.

4.    Consideration of this Board, however, is not  limited  to  the  events
which precipitated the discharge.  We have  a  Congressional  mandate  which
permits consideration of other factors; e.g.,  applicant’s  background,  the
overall   quality   of   service,   and    post-service    activities    and
accomplishments.  Further, we may base our decision  on  matters  of  equity
and clemency rather than simply  on  whether  rules  and  regulations  which
existed at the time were followed.  This is  a  much  broader  consideration
than officials involved in the discharge were permitted,  and  our  decision
in no way discredits the validity of theirs.

5.    Under our broader mandate and after careful consideration of  all  the
facts  and  circumstances  of  applicant’s  case,  we  are  persuaded   that
applicant has overcome the behavioral traits  which  led  to  the  contested
discharge and has been a productive member of  society.   We  recognize  the
adverse impact of the discharge applicant received; and, while it  may  have
been appropriate at the time, we believe it would be an  injustice  for  him
to continue to suffer its effects.  Accordingly,  we  find  that  corrective
action is appropriate as a matter of equity and on the  basis  of  clemency.
Therefore, we recommend his records be corrected  to  the  extent  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  3  December  1957,  he  was
discharged  with  service  characterized   as   general   (under   honorable
conditions).

_________________________________________________________________

The following members of the Board  considered  Docket  Number  01-02031  in
Executive Session on 2 May 2002, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

                  Ms. Patricia J. Zarodkiewicz, Panel Chair
                  Mr. Michael Maglio, Member
                  Mrs. Carolyn J. Watkins, Member

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

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 4 June 2001, w/atchs
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPPRS, dated 5 Sep 01.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MIBR, dated 21 Sep 01.
    Exhibit E.  Letter, Applicant, dated 2 Oct 01, w/atchs.
      Exhibit F.  Investigative Report, FBI.
      Exhibit G.  Letter, AFBCMR, dated 29 Mar 02.
      Exhibit H.  Letter, Applicant, dated 15 Apr 02, w/atchs.




                                   MICHAEL MAGLIO
                                   Acting Panel Chair

AFBCMR 01-02031




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 3 December 1957, he was
discharged with service characterized as general (under honorable
conditions).








JOE G. LINEBERGER

Director

Air Force Review Boards Agency