RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2007-01588
            INDEX CODE:  110.00
            COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED:  NO

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

The following items on his DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or  Discharge
from Active Duty, be changed:

1.  Block 25:  Separation Authority (AFR 39-10)

2.  Block 27:  Reentry Code (2C)

3.  Block 28:  Narrative Reason for Separation (Personality Disorder)

On 4 Jun 08, the applicant indicated he  would  like  his  narrative  reason
changed  to  read  "early  release"   or   "secretarial   authority,"   with
corresponding SPD codes, and his reenlistment code changed to a  "1"  series
code.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He appeared to be on his way to becoming one of the best crew chiefs in  the
Air Force.  His dedication was surpassed only by his thirst  for  knowledge.
However, on the morning of 5 Jul 93,  all  plans  for  his  future  abruptly
changed for the worse when he became a victim of sexual assault  by  a  male
non-commissioned officer (NCO).

He was not provided information on available programs to help him cope  with
the trauma of his sexual assault  and  his  case  was  not  disposed  of  as
outlined in the manual for Court-Martial.  The disciplinary actions  against
him were an abuse of discretion and were clearly not uniform to those  of  a
woman who reports a sexual assault.  The actions were inconsistent with  the
Department of Defense (DoD) commitment to ensure victims of  sexual  assault
be protected, treated with dignity, respect,  and  provided  proper  medical
and psychological care.

After his return from the  hospital,  his  dormitory  became  his  new  duty
section by order of his first sergeant.  He was ordered not  to  go  to  the
orderly room without permission from his first sergeant or  commander  which
hindered his ability to research all applicable  regulations  pertaining  to
his discharge, as advised in his Letter of Notification.

He later requested a transfer which was denied by his  commander.   His  job
performance  gradually  started  to  deteriorate   and   he   was   becoming
uncharacteristically argumentative with  his  supervisors.   He  received  a
Letter of Counseling for arguing with an NCO.   His  commander  requested  a
clinical social worker conduct a mental  evaluation  at  his  duty  station.
Information pertaining to the sexual assault was not provided.

His service record at that time  along  with  his  past  several  years  are
grossly incongruous.  He has since excelled as  a  military  contractor  for
the past seven years.  He has received many  certificates  of  training  and
has a clean driving record.  He is married and has two children.

Thirteen years is plenty of time to prove that his actions on the  night  of
the LOC were a rare one time aberration that he has  successfully  overcome.
However, his discharge narrative of "personality disorder"  has  stigmatized
him and caused significant negative occupational and financial impact.   His
actions  were  caused  by  inequities  and  other  mitigating  issues   that
occurred.  He humbly requests a change to his records.

In support his application, he submits a  personal  statement,  an  AF  Form
1168, Statement of Complaint, character reference letters, an AF  Form  910,
Enlisted Performance Report,  an  AF  Form  932,  NCO  Performance  Feedback
Worksheet,  letters  of  appreciation,  certificates   of   completion   and
participation, and excerpts from various instructions.

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

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

On 27 Jun 91, the applicant enlisted in the Regular Air Force at the age  of
18 for a period of four years.  After completion of basic military  training
and technical school, he was assigned duties  as  a  Helicopter  Maintenance
Apprentice.  He was honorably discharged by reason of  Personality  Disorder
on 28 Jan 94.  He had served 2 years 11 months and 2 days on active duty.

The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application, extracted  from
the applicant’s military records, are contained in the letters  prepared  by
the appropriate office of the Air Force at Exhibits C and D.

_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The BCMR Medical Consultant opines that a change in the applicant's  records
is warranted to reflect Adjustment Disorder  as  the  narrative  reason  for
discharge.

On 6 Jul 93, the applicant filed a formal statement  that  he  was  sexually
molested by another military member on the night of  4 Jul  93  after  going
out drinking.  He was seen in a Mental Health Clinic from 2 Jul  93  through
1 Jun 94 after being referred by Social Actions for  hostility  towards  his
supervisors.  Specific records of these visits are maintained in the  Mental
Health Clinic and were not included in this package.

On  5  Nov  93,  he  received  a  Record  of   Individual   Counseling   for
insubordination.   A  psychological  evaluation  was  requested.    He   was
hospitalized at a referral  hospital  from  5  -12  Nov  93,  where  he  was
evaluated by a psychiatrist.  Specific details of his  inpatient  stay  were
not available  for  review.   However,  he  was  diagnosed  with  Adjustment
Disorder with Disturbance of Conduct (Axis 1) and Personality Disorder  with
Narcissistic and Antisocial Traits (Axis II).

Personality  disorders  are  lifelong  patterns  of  maladjustment  in   the
individual's personality structure which are not medically disqualifying  or
unfitting but may render the  individual  unsuitable  for  further  military
service and may be cause for administrative action by the individual's  unit
commander.  They are  frequently  exacerbated  by  stress  and  may  present
symptoms consistent with Adjustment Disorder.   Adjustment  and  Personality
Disorder are conditions that alone or  together  may  render  an  individual
unsuitable for military service and subject to an administrative discharge.

At the time of discharge, there were no options available to  commanders  to
separate individuals for Adjustment Disorder;  therefore,  individuals  with
Adjustment  Disorder  were  usually  separated  with  Personality  Disorder.
Adjustment Disorder was approved as a valid reason for separation on  2  Feb
07.

The complete BCMR Medical Consultant's evaluation is at Exhibit C.

HQ AFPC/JA recommends the applicant's request be approved and his  discharge
be changed to one deemed appropriate based on the record and  recommendation
of the BCMR Medical Consultant.

JA states that neither the applicant's petition nor the records disclose  an
abuse of command  discretion.   The  various  policies  addressed  regarding
mental health evaluations and sexual assault  were  implemented  or  further
developed since his discharge.  The decisions made by  law  enforcement  and
command were made in the midst of an investigation and without  the  benefit
of hindsight.

The specific facts of this case present a unique  situation.   Even  if  the
applicant was diagnosed with a condition that interfered with  his  military
service,  the  existence  of  the  condition  itself  was  insufficient  for
discharge without an adverse effect on assignment or duty  performance.   To
discharge an Airman with an adjustment  disorder  or  personality  disorder,
the adverse effect on assignment or  duty  performance  must  be  explained.
For the applicant, the adverse effect manifested itself in his dealing  with
supervisors after the sexual assault because he was not believed  about  the
sexual assault.  The timing of his discharge  precluded  resolution  of  the
allegations  against  his  attacker.   Hindsight  does  not   illuminate   a
different course had the consideration  for  discharge  occurred  after  the
court-martial, but it frames the events  for  consideration  as  to  whether
these  circumstances  constitute  an  injustice  that  warrants  the  relief
requested by the applicant.

The complete JA evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit D.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

In paragraph four of his response dated 30 Apr 08,  the  applicant  contends
there are two obvious errors in the BCMR Medical Consultant's statement.

      1)  The length of time stated that he was seen in  the  Mental  Health
Clinic (20 Jul 93 to 1 Jun 94) is incorrect, as he was discharged on 28  Jan
94.

      2)  He was "continuously seen at  the  clinic  for  hostility  to  his
supervisors."  If he was attending counseling sessions as stated, why  would
his supervisor recommend a psychological evaluation and  his  commander  and
first sergeant approve the recommendation?

He concludes the actual reason for the session on 20 Jul 93  was  to  comply
with the Air Force's Tract 2 alcohol program and his next and only visit  to
the Mental Health Clinic was a follow up session that was ordered after  his
release from the hospital.  He also provided additional character  reference
letters.

The applicant's complete response, with attachments, is at Exhibit F.

_________________________________________________________________

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 error or injustice that would warrant a change  in  the  reason
for the applicant’s separation.  We agree  with  the  opinion  of  the  BCMR
Medical Consultant and adopt his rationale as the basis for  our  conclusion
that  the  applicant’s  reason  for  separation  should  be   changed   from
personality disorder to adjustment  disorder.   We  note  that  AFPC/JA  had
indicated its concurrence with the medical consultant’s recommendation.   In
regards to applicant's request to change his RE code, no evidence  has  been
provided that would lead us to conclude the RE  code  he  was  assigned  was
anything other than appropriate.  In the absence of persuasive  evidence  to
the  contrary,  the  RE  code  portion  of  his  request  is  not  favorably
considered.  Therefore, we  conclude  that  applicant's  records  should  be
corrected only 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 he  was  discharged  on  28  January
1994 with a narrative reason for separation of "Adjustment Disorder"  rather
than "Personality Disorder," and a separation  code  of  "JFY"  rather  than
"JFX."

_________________________________________________________________

The following members of the Board considered this application in  Executive
Session on 19 Jun 08, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

      Mr. Thomas S. Markiewicz, Chair
      Ms. Janet I. Hassan, Member
      Ms. Vinita J. Veneziano-Martin, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered in AFBCMR BC-2007-01588:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 25 May 07, w/atchs.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, BCMR Med Consultant, dated 4 Oct 07.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, HQ AFPC/JA, dated 14 Apr 08.
    Exhibit E.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 18 Apr 08.
    Exhibit F.  Letter, Applicant, dated 30 Apr 08, w/atchs..




                                   THOMAS S. MARKIEWICZ
                                   Panel Chair



AFBCMR BC-2007-01588



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 he  was  discharged  on  28
January  1994  with  a  narrative  reason  for  separation  of   "Adjustment
Disorder" rather than "Personality  Disorder,"  and  a  separation  code  of
"JFY" rather than "JFX."




                                                                        JOE
G. LINEBERGER

Director
                                                                         Air
Force Review Boards Agency