RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 

AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS 

 

IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2010-00091 

 INDEX CODE: 110.02 

 COUNSEL: NONE 

 HEARING DESIRED: NO 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: 

 

1. Her rank of master sergeant (E7) be reinstated with the 
original date of rank (DOR) of 1 Nov 07. 

 

2. Her Letter of Reprimand (LOR) which was received as a result 
of the alleged charge of absent without leave (AWOL) be 
permanently removed from her records. 

 

3. Her Total Active Federal Military Service Date (TAFMSD) of 
21 Jul 87 be reinstated. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: 

 

Her demotion to technical sergeant (E6) was unjust, 
unsubstantiated, and there was no progressive discipline 
exercised in the matter. 

 

She continued to serve honorably and received no further 
disciplinary actions. Nevertheless, she has been penalized over 
$5,750 in base pay alone and, as of 15 Jan 10, she will continue 
to lose $798.30 for each month the demotion order remains in 
effect. 

 

On 7 May 09, she was given an LOR because she was unduly charged 
with being AWOL and her personnel records were changed to 
reflect a loss of 11 days. This action caused her TAFMSD to be 
changed from 21 Jul 87 to 2 Aug 87. 

 

She believes her punishment was extreme and unwarranted because 
she was 100 percent contactable and under military control the 
entire time in question. 

 

She encountered numerous problems with her Government Travel 
Card (GTC) and she reported the problems to her superiors. She 
had her husband’s squadron assist her and at no time did she 
hide from authorities or attempt to deceive her unit. 

 

Her understanding of the out-processing and travel voucher 
processing was confirmed by the 18th Comptroller Squadron. 

 


Had her unit purchased her plane ticket she could have returned 
immediately following her temporary duty (TDY). 

 

In support of her requests, the applicant provides personal 
statements, extracts from her personnel records, and e-mails. 

 

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

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

STATEMENT OF FACTS: 

 

On 1 Jul 10, the applicant was retired in the grade of technical 
sergeant. She was credited with 22 years, 10 months, and 
29 days of active service. 

 

In November 2008, the applicant, then a master sergeant and 
assigned to Kadena Air Base, Japan, went TDY to Washington, 
District of Columbia, to work on the Armed Forces Inauguration 
Committee. Upon completion of her TDY, she went to Ellsworth 
AFB, South Dakota, rather than return to her assigned unit. She 
remained in South Dakota for 12 days, at which time her unit 
ordered her to return. After her return, she completed her 
travel voucher indicating the 12 days spent in South Dakota were 
for an “authorized delay.” 

 

Available records reflect the applicant’s commander offered her 
nonjudicial punishment under the provision of Article 15, 
Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), for being AWOL from on 
or about 5 Feb 09 until on or about 20 Feb 09. On or about 
25 Feb 09, she signed a false official statement with intent to 
deceive. On 1 May 09, she submitted written statements to the 
commander. After considering the applicant’s written matters 
and weighing the evidence, the commander determined the 
applicant committed the alleged offenses. Her punishment 
consisted of a reduction in grade to technical sergeant, with a 
new DOR of 7 May 09, and a reprimand. She appealed the 
decision; however, the group and wing commanders denied the 
appeal. The Article 15 was reviewed and found legally 
sufficient at two separate levels of review. 

 

Other relevant facts pertaining to this application are 
contained in the AFLOA/JAJM evaluation, which is at Exhibit C. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

AFLOA/JAJM recommends denial and states the applicant has not 
shown a clear error or injustice occurred in the processing of 
her non-judicial punishment. Further, while commanders are 
encouraged to progressively discipline subordinates, there is no 


requirement that a squadron commander address a 12-day AWOL and 
a false official statement with anything less severe than an 
Article 15. The commander was in the best position to decide 
whether an Article 15 was appropriate for the offenses and he 
was also best placed to evaluate all of the evidence in the 
case, the submission of the applicant, and the effect that the 
applicant’s offenses had on the unit’s morale, good order and 
discipline. A set aside of the applicant’s Article 15 is not in 
the best interest of the Air Force and should not be granted. 

 

The complete AFLOA/JAJM evaluation is at Exhibit C. 

 

HQ AFPC/DPTOS states that in accordance with AFI 36-2134, Air 
Force Duty Status Program, paragraph 3.2.10.1, any time a member 
(enlisted or officer) spends in AWOL status, desertion, or any 
confinement whether pre or post-trial, it is considered non-
creditable service (also referred to as lost time). 

 

The complete HQ AFPC/DPTOS evaluation is at Exhibit D. 

 

HQ AFPC/DPSOE states they defer to the recommendation of 
AFLOA/JAJM. 

 

The complete HQ AFPC/DPSOE evaluation is at Exhibit E. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

Copies of the Air Force evaluations were forwarded to the 
applicant on 29 Oct 10 for review and comment within 30 days 
(Exhibit F). As of this date, this office has not received a 
response. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 

 

1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by 
existing law or regulations. 

 

2. The application was timely filed. 

 

3. Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to 
demonstrate the existence of an injustice to warrant corrective 
action. In this respect, the evidence of record provided by the 
applicant supports her assertions that she exercised due 
diligence in resolving the GTC problems with the GTC 
representative. We note the comments made in the 23 January 
2009, email between the applicant and the GTC representative 
where he apologizes for the difficulties with getting the funds 
credited to her GTC account and states “I will work with the 


wing POC on this but he doesn’t answer my E-mails in a timely 
manner.” The applicant also emailed her officer in charge (OIC) 
on 26 January 2009, to explain the GTC problems she was 
experiencing; however, it was not until 13 February 2009, that 
the commander authorized usage of the fund cite so the applicant 
could purchase a return ticket to Okinawa, Japan. In his 
authorization letter the commander acknowledges the applicant’s 
GTC had reached its limit and that she was awaiting payment of 
the accrual travel voucher. Therefore, we find it reasonable to 
believe the applicant’s unit failed to ensure the proper funds 
were placed in her GTC account in a timely manner. The 
applicant also provides a statement from the accounting and 
finance office (AFO) that appears to corroborate her contentions 
that she was instructed by AFO on how to complete her travel 
voucher. We acknowledge the applicant was not without fault in 
this matter; however, we believe the punishment the applicant 
received was excessive in view of the circumstances surrounding 
the incident. While we normally would not substitute our 
judgment for that of the commander we believe the totality of 
the circumstances and the applicant’s overall record of 
performance give rise to an element of doubt that the punishment 
was warranted. As such, we elect to resolve the doubt in favor 
of the applicant. In regards to the applicant’s request for 
removal of the LOR, after reviewing her master personnel records 
it appears the LOR is no longer a matter of record, as such, no 
further action is required by this Board. Therefore, we 
recommend the record be corrected as 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: 

 

 a. The Article 15, Uniform Code of Military Justice, 
initiated on 27 April 2009 and imposed on 15 May 2009, be, and 
hereby is, declared void and expunged from her records and all 
rights, privileges and property of which she may have been 
deprived be restored. 

 

 b. The period 8 February 2009 to 18 February 2009 was not 
lost time, but considered creditable service, and that she is 
entitled to full pay and allowances for this period. 

 

 c. Her rank of master sergeant was restored with a date of 
rank and effective date of 1 November 2007. 

 


 d. She was retired in the grade of master sergeant 
effective 1 July 2010. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

The following members of the Board considered Docket Number BC-
2010-00091 in Executive Session on 16 December 2010, under the 
provisions of AFI 36-2603: 

 

XXXX, Panel Chair 

XXXX, Member 

XXXX, Member 

 

All members voted to correct the records, as recommended. The 
following documentary evidence was considered for AFBCMR Docket 
Number BC-2010-00091: 

 

 Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 6 Jan 10, w/atchs. 

 Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. 

 Exhibit C. Letter, AFLOA/JAJM, dated 20 Jul 10. 

 Exhibit D. Letter, HQ AFPC/DPTOS, dated 3 Sep 10. 

 Exhibit E. Letter, HQ AFPC/DPSOE, dated 22 Sep 10. 

 Exhibit F. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 29 Oct 10. 

 

 

 

 

 XXXX 

 Panel Chair