RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2005-01229
            INDEX CODE: 110.02, 108.01
      XXXXXXX    COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED:  NOT INDICATED

MANDATORY CASE COMPLETION DATE:  13 Oct 07

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His 1989 bad conduct discharge (BCD) be changed to a general discharge
for medical disability.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He suffered from a mental disorder caused by the Air  Force.   In  Oct
97, his brother told him he had AIDS and they both  kept  this  secret
for many years.  The news of his brother’s  illness  and  the  hostile
environment in which he worked impaired his ability to serve.  He  was
discriminated  against  because  of  his  religious  beliefs.  He  was
depressed and suicidal.  His mental disorders and the  stress  he  was
under caused him to  develop  congestive  heart  failure.  [Note:  The
applicant’s brother, who served in the Navy  during  24 May  79-23 Apr
94, did have service-connected AIDS.  He died  on  23 Dec  00  due  to
myocardial infarction.]

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

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant served in  the  Mississippi  Army  National  Guard  from
13 Sep 85 until 16 Dec 86, when he was honorably discharged to  enlist
in a Regular component.

He enlisted in the Regular Air Force on 17 Dec 86 for a period of  six
years as a medical specialist  assigned  to  the  operating  room  and
delivery suite.  He was unhappy with his job and wanted to cross-train
into the  chaplain  management  career  field.   In  Nov  87,  he  was
diagnosed with adjustment disorder (AD)  with  depressed  mood,  mild,
occupational problem  and  recommended  for  cross-training.   Another
mental health evaluation in Jan 88 resulted in a diagnosis of AD  with
disturbance of conduct and narcissistic  personality.   Administrative
discharge  was  recommended.   A  sanity  board  found  the  applicant
mentally responsible at the time of the offenses and mentally  capable
of standing trial.  During this period, the applicant committed repeat
offenses while awaiting  action  for  previous  offenses.  Charges  of
failure to go to his appointed place of duty on two occasions, absence
without leave (AWOL) for 30 days, and desertion until apprehended were
referred for general court-martial (GCM).  Following conviction by GCM
on 4 and 5 Aug 88 of all charges and specifications,  he  was  reduced
from airman first class  to  airman  basic,  confined  for  120  days,
forfeited $400.00 pay per month for  four  months,  and  separated  on
26 May 89 with a BCD.

In an AFBCMR application dated 17 Nov 93 (Docket  No.  BC-1993-06037),
the applicant requested his BCD be upgraded to honorable,  the  reason
for  discharge  be  changed  from  “Conviction  by  Court-Martial”  to
“Convenience of the Government,” and his reenlistment eligibility (RE)
code be changed and he be reinstated.  He contended his command abused
its authority, his discharge was improper, and he suffered  harassment
and religious discrimination that impaired his ability to serve.   The
Board denied his case on 30 Aug 94.

Additional details regarding the circumstances of the applicant’s  BCD
and the AFBCMR decision are provided at the military personnel  record
(Exhibit B) and the  Record  of  Proceedings  (ROP),  dated  4 Nov  94
(Exhibit C).

The applicant’s requests for reconsideration were denied on 14 Apr 99,
29 May 01, and 14 Jan 02, as he had not submitted new evidence.

In a decision dated 18 Mar 05,  the  Department  of  Veterans  Affairs
(DVA) concluded the applicant’s BCD constituted a bar to DVA  benefits
because there was no evidence to show this character of discharge  had
been upgraded and no credible medical evidence to show he  was  insane
at the time the offenses were committed.

_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFLSA/JAJM recommends denial because the applicant’s  contentions  are
untimely, without merit, and constitute neither error  nor  injustice.
The applicant relies on the same information that was presented before
the trial judge, the convening authority,  and  the  appellate  courts
regarding his mental health at the time  of  the  court-martial.   The
Board  is  limited  by  statute  from  reversing,  setting  aside,  or
otherwise expunging a court-martial conviction  that  occurred  on  or
after 5 May 50.  While the Board may reduce a sentence on the basis of
clemency, there is no reason to exercise clemency in this  case.   All
the information presented here has been presented before. None of  the
information presented is “newly  discovered  relevant  evidence;”  the
applicant knew it all for years.   The  applicant  has  not  made  the
proper showing to have  his  case  reconsidered.   He  has  failed  to
present newly discovered relevant evidence that was not available when
the Board  previously  considered  his  application  or  to  otherwise
demonstrate the existence of any error or injustice.

A complete copy of the AFLSA/JAJM evaluation is at Exhibit D.

The AFBCMR Medical Consultant recommends the  application  be  denied.
He notes that post-service documentation from 2003 shows the applicant
is suffering from severe dilated  cardiomyopathy  (weak  heart  muscle
associated  with  congestive  heart  failure)  of  unknown   etiology,
considered possibly due to high blood pressure.  The  Consultant  adds
there is no evidence  this  condition  is  related  to  service.   The
documented diagnoses  of  adjustment  and  personality  disorders  are
unsuiting conditions that may warrant administrative  discharge  by  a
member’s commander; however, they do not render an  individual  unable
to know right from wrong, to  appreciate  the  wrongfulness  of  their
behavior, or to adhere  to  the  right.   Although  an  administrative
discharge  may  be  justified  based  on  unsuitability,   Air   Force
regulations stipulate  that  a  discharge  for  unsuitability  is  not
appropriate when the airman’s record supports a discharge for  another
reason such as misconduct or unsatisfactory performance.   Action  and
disposition in this case were proper and equitable.

A complete copy of the AFBCMR Medical Consultant’s  evaluation  is  at
Exhibit E.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

Complete copies of the Air Force evaluations  were  forwarded  to  the
applicant on 5 Jun 06 for review and comment within 30  days  (Exhibit
F).  As of this date, this office has received no response.

_________________________________________________________________

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  error  or  injustice  to  warrant  upgrading   the
applicant’s BCD to a general discharge  for  medical  disability.   We
carefully considered the applicant's complete  submission  in  judging
the merits of the case;  however,  we  agree  with  the  opinions  and
recommendations of the AFLSA/JAJM and the  AFBCMR  Medical  Consultant
and adopt their rationale as the basis for  our  conclusion  that  the
applicant has not been the victim  of  an  error  or  injustice.   The
applicant’s assertion the Air Force caused the stress and  his  mental
disorders that led to his developing congestive heart failure  is  not
supported by the evidence of record.   Further,  most  of  the  issues
raised in this appeal were considered by the sanity board,  the  trial
judge, the convening authority, and the appellate courts at  the  time
of his court-martial.   The  applicant  has  not  established  to  our
satisfaction his BCD was an inappropriate punishment for the  offenses
he committed or  his  present  heart  condition  is  service  related.
Therefore, in the absence of 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 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 18 July 2006 under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

                 Ms. Kathleen F. Graham, Panel Chair
                 Mr. Wallace F. Beard, Jr., Member
                 Ms. Karen A. Holloman, Member

The following documentary evidence relating to AFBCMR Docket Number BC-
2005-01229 was considered:

   Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 7 Apr 05, w/atchs.
   Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
   Exhibit C.  Record of Proceedings, dated 4 Nov 94.
   Exhibit D.  Letter, AFLSA/JAJM, dated 15 Aug 05.
   Exhibit E.  Letter, AFBCMR Medical Consultant, dated 1 Jun 06.
   Exhibit F.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 5 Jun 06.




                                   KATHLEEN F. GRAHAM
                                   Panel Chair