RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 

AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS 

 

IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2010-04574 

COUNSEL: NONE 

 HEARING DESIRED: NO 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: 

 

His bad conduct discharge (BCD) be upgraded. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: 

 

At the time of his court-martial, he only had 40 more days before 
he was separating from the military with an honorable discharge. 
The charges brought against him were completely hearsay. The 
offense, which allegedly took place off base, was not illegal in 
the State’s jurisdiction at that time. 

 

The applicant does not provide any evidence in support of his 
appeal. 

 

A copy of the applicant’s complete submission is at Exhibit A. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

STATEMENT OF FACTS: 

 

The applicant is a former member of the Regular Air Force who 
entered active duty on 6 September 1978. He was progressively 
promoted to the grade of senior airman (E-4). 

 

On 1 June 1981, the applicant was non-selected for reenlistment 
under the Selective Reenlistment Program for not meeting 
acceptable standards of personal responsibility, i.e., problems 
with personal management and meeting acceptable military and 
grooming standards. On 8 June 1981, the applicant chose not to 
appeal the decision. 

 

In July 1982, the applicant was tried and found guilty by a 
general court-martial for violation of Article 134, Uniform Code 
of Military Justice (UCMJ), and was sentenced to one year 
confinement at hard labor, reduction to the grade of airman basic 
(E-1), and a BCD. 

 

On 22 October 1982, the sentence was approved as adjudged. On 
26 October 1983, after the appeal process was completed and 
affirmed the findings and sentence in the case, the applicant’s 
BCD was ordered to be executed. 

 


On 2 November 1983, after serving his period of confinement, the 
applicant was separated from active duty with a BCD. His 
narrative reason for separation indicates “conviction by court-
martial (other than desertion). He served 4 years, 4 months, and 
13 days on active duty. 

 

Pursuant to the Board’s request, the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation (FBI), Clarksburg, WV, provided a copy of an 
Investigation Report (Exhibit C). 

 

On 14 June 2011, the applicant was given an opportunity to submit 
comments about his post service activities and in response to the 
FBI Report (Exhibit F). The applicant’s response is at Exhibit 
G. 

 

The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are 
contained in the evaluation prepared by the appropriate office of 
the Air Force at Exhibit D. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

AFLOA/JAJM recommends denial. JAJM states the only records of 
military justice actions against the applicant are located in his 
personnel records. The Air Force Military Justice Division does 
not have a record of the actions against him in their Automated 
Military Justice Analysis and Management System. In addition, 
there is no record of trial available for the court-martial 
indicated in his personnel records. 

 

JAJM states they cannot directly evaluate the applicant’s claims 
of specific error at his trial since they do not have a copy of 
the record of trial. However, the available documents in his 
military personnel records point to the fact that he had a fair 
trial and was afforded all his rights as a service member facing 
a general court-martial. 

 

JAJM indicates that under Title 10, United States Code (USC), 
Section 1552(f), which amended the basic corrections board 
legislation, the Air Force Board for Correction of Military 
Record’s (AFBCMR) ability to correct records related to courts-
martial, is limited. Specifically, Section 1552(f)(1) permits 
the correction of a record to reflect actions taken by reviewing 
authorities under the UCMJ. Additionally, Section 1552(f)(2) 
permits the correction of records related to action on the 
sentence of courts-martial for the purpose of clemency. Apart 
from these two limited exceptions, the effect of Section 1552(f) 
is that the AFBCMR is without authority to reverse, set-aside, or 
otherwise expunge a court-martial conviction that occurred on or 
after 5 May 1950 (the effective date of the UCMJ). 

 


It is JAJM’s opinion that while clemency may be granted under 
Title 10, USC, Section 1552 (f) (2), the applicant has not 
provided sufficient information to warrant a grant of clemency by 
the Board. 

 

The complete JAJM evaluation is at Exhibit D. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

He has been a painting contractor for over 25 years, from the date 
of his discharge to the date he injured a cervical disc and was 
forced into retirement in 2004. Since then, he has become a 
software developer working freelance projects and building websites 
for small businesses. He has also had sales and retail management 
experience since 2004. 

 

Over the past 14 years, he has made volunteering a big part of his 
life. He admits he made some bad decisions which led to the 
circumstances of his discharge; however, he has resolved those 
issues that contributed to his conviction. 

 

The applicant’s complete rebuttal, 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. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to 
demonstrate the existence of probable error or injustice. We 
note this Board is without authority to reverse, set aside, or 
otherwise expunge a court-martial conviction. Rather, in 
accordance with Title 10, United States Code, Section 1552F, our 
actions are limited to corrections to the record to reflect 
actions taken by the reviewing officials and action on the 
sentence of the court-martial for the purpose of clemency. We 
find no evidence which indicates the applicant’s service 
characterization, which had its basis in his court-martial 
conviction and was a part of the sentence of the military court, 
was improper or that it exceeded the limitations set forth in the 
UCMJ. We have considered the applicant’s overall quality of 
service, the court-martial conviction which precipitated the 
discharge, the seriousness of the offenses of which convicted, 
and the absence of any other documentation pertaining to post-
service activities. We considered upgrading the discharge based 


on clemency; however, we do not find the evidence presented is 
sufficient to compel us to recommend granting the relief sought 
on that basis. Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the 
contrary, we find no basis upon which 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 AFBCMR Docket 
Number BC-2010-04574 in Executive Session on 9 August 2011, under 
the provisions of AFI 36-2603: 

 

 , Panel Chair 

 , Member 

 , Member 

 

The following documentary evidence was considered in connection 
with AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2010-04574: 

 

 Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 29 Nov 10. 

 Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. 

 Exhibit C. FBI Report. 

 Exhibit D. Letter, AFLOA/JAJM, dated 28 Mar 11. 

 Exhibit E. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 8 Apr 11. 

 Exhibit F. Letter, AFBCMR, dated 14 Jun 11, w/atch. 

 Exhibit G. Letter, Applicant, not dated, w/atchs. 

 

 

 

 

 

 Panel Chair