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


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2000-00961

            COUNSEL:  None

            HEARING DESIRED:  Yes

_________________________________________________________________

This request for reconsideration of the application for  the  correction  of
the records of E--- J---  (Deceased)  was  submitted  by  Mrs.  A.  E.  J---
(former spouse).


APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

In the applicant’s request for reconsideration, she  requests  the  military
records of her former spouse be corrected to show  she  is  entitled  to  an
annuity under the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) program.
_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The former member and the applicant were married on  29  November  1968  and
divorced on 22 May  1995.   The  divorce  decree  indicates  that  both  the
applicant and the former member agreed to “execute  the  appropriate  waiver
relinquishing the wife’s rights to any  benefits  she  may  be  entitled  to
under the Survivor’s Benefit Plan from the Air Force  Retirement/Pension  of
the Husband.”  On 8 June 1995, the  former  member  sent  a  letter  to  the
Defense Finance and Accounting Service  (DFAS)  requesting  cancellation  of
his SBP coverage.  In the HQ AFPC/DPPTR advisory opinion  of  19  May  2000,
they indicated the former  member’s  SBP  premiums  were  suspended  and  he
received a refund of premiums paid  past  the  date  of  divorce  (refer  to
Exhibit C to the Record of Proceedings).  The former member died on 8  March
1997.

A similar appeal was considered and denied by the Board on  5 October  2000.
A summary of the evidence  considered  and  the  rationale  of  the  earlier
decision by the Board is set forth in the Record of Proceedings  at  Exhibit
F.

On 10 January 2002, in response to a congressional  inquiry,  in  behalf  of
the   applicant,   the   AFBCMR   denied   the   applicant’s   request   for
reconsideration of her application (Refer to Exhibit G).

In the  applicant’s  most  recent  request  for  reconsideration,  submitted
through her congressman, she contends that the signature on the 8 June  1995
letter canceling her SBP coverage is not the former member’s signature.   To
support this assertion, the  applicant  provided  a  personal  statement,  a
statement from a Forensic Investigator who opines that the signature on  the
letter in question is not the signature of the  applicant’s  former  spouse,
and copies of additional correspondence concerning the issue  under  review.
Since the  Forensic  Investigator  is  not  a  board  certified  handwriting
analyst, he suggested obtaining  a  military  handwriting  analysis  of  the
document in question for its signature validity.  The  applicant’s  complete
submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit H.
_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

Pursuant to the Board’s request for  an  analysis  of  the  former  member’s
handwriting through the Air Force Office of Special  Investigation  (AFOSI),
the Forensic  Document  Division  of  the  US  Army  Criminal  Investigation
Laboratory (CILA-FD) completed their analysis and submitted  their  findings
to AFOSI on 1 September 2004.  The CILA-FD findings revealed that  “E.  J---
probably wrote the original of the questioned “E--- J---” signature.”   This
complete evaluation is at Exhibit J.
_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

Having been provided the CILA-FD  analysis,  through  her  congressman,  the
applicant submitted a personal statement for the  Board’s  review  in  which
she notes the somewhat inconclusive findings provided by AFOSI and  requests
the Board also consider the analysis findings  she  provided  from  Forensic
Investigations  Unlimited.   The  applicant’s  complete   submission,   with
attachments, is at Exhibit L.
_________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

After again reviewing this application and the evidence provided in  support
of the appeal, we remain unpersuaded that the records  of  applicant’s  late
husband should be corrected to show she is entitled to an annuity under  the
Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP).  In her most recent submissions, the  applicant
asserts the signature on the 8 June 1995 cancellation letter to  DFAS  is  a
forgery.  Although  the  applicant  provided  an  affidavit  by  a  licensed
private detective indicating it is his belief the signature  is  a  forgery,
we note that this individual is not a board certified  handwriting  analyst.
We  are  not  unsympathetic  to  the  applicant’s  plight  and  applaud  the
extraordinary efforts on her part to support her case.  On the  other  hand,
in fairness to the system, our decision must be based on  the  preponderance
of the evidence submitted and of record.   In  this  regard,  a  handwriting
analysis conducted, through the Office of Special Investigations  (OSI),  by
the Forensic Document  Division,  Department  of  the  Army,  concluded  the
applicant’s former spouse “probably” wrote the signature  in  question.   In
addition to the cited letter, we noted the applicant’s SBP  eligibility  was
waived in the divorce decree.  In view of the foregoing and in  the  absence
of a showing the applicant has a  legal  right  to  the  relief  sought,  we
believe she has failed to sustain her burden of establishing  the  existence
of either an error or an injustice.  Therefore, we have no  basis  on  which
to favorably consider the requested 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 2 December 2004, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

      Mr. Roscoe Hinton Jr., Panel Chair
      Mr. Michael K. Gallogly, Member
      Mr. Michael J. Novel, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered in connection with  AFBCMR
Docket Number BC-2000-00961.

      Exhibit F.  Record of Proceedings, dated 6 Oct 00,
                with exhibits.
      Exhibit G.  Congressional Inquiries, with atchs, dated 7 Feb
                01 and 20 Dec 02, and AFBCMR draft replies.
      Exhibit H.  Congressional Inquiry, dated 22 Aug 03, with
                atchs.
    Exhibit I.  Letter, AFBCMR, dated 3 Mar 04, with atchs.
      Exhibit J.  OSI/CILA-FD Report, dated 1 Sep 04.
      Exhibit K.  Letter, AFBCMR, dated 5 Oct 04.
      Exhibit L.  Letter from Member of Congress, dated 4 Nov 04,
                with atchs.




                                   ROSCOE HINTON JR.
                                   Panel Chair