RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 

AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS 

 

 

IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2011-02487 

 COUNSEL: NONE 

 HEARING DESIRED: YES 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: 

 

1. He be awarded the Bronze Star Medal with Valor (BSM w/V) 

 

2. He be awarded the Air Force Combat Action Medal (AFCAM) - withdrawn (See Exhibit E). 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: 

 

The BSM w/V citation was never submitted by his commander who 
plagiarized his BSM w/V citation and subsequently his commander 
was awarded the BSM for the actions he performed. 

 

In support of his request, the applicant submits a personal 
statement and documents extracted from his military personnel 
records. 

 

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

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

STATEMENT OF FACTS: 

 

The applicant is currently serving on active duty in the grade of 
major having assumed that grade effective 11 May 2003 and with a 
date of rank (DOR) of 28 October 2001. 

 

Examiner’s Note: Attempts to obtain a copy of the Commander 
Directed Investigation (CDI) were unsuccessful since the 
investigation has since been destroyed in accordance with 
governing instructions. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

AFPC/DPSIDRA recommends denial. DPSIDRA states on 3 August 2011, 
they provided the applicant with Air Force Form 3994, 
Recommendation for Decoration Deployment/Contingency Operations, 
and instructions so that he could submit his request for 


entitlement to the AFCAM to the United States Air Force Central 
(AFCENT) for determination. 

 

The applicant received award of the Air Force Commendation Medal 
(AFCM) for his service at Camp Champion, Iraq, from 4 December 
2003 to 15 February 2004 per Special Order G-0336. Award of the 
AFCM has already been made; therefore, award of the BSM w/V would 
be considered dual recognition. 

 

In correspondence dated 3 July 2007 signed by the Vice Commander, 
9th Air Force, according to the Commander Directed Investigation 
directed by the 9th Air Force Commander the allegations raised by 
the applicant were found to be unsubstantiated and the 
commander’s decision to submit the applicant for award of the 
AFCM as opposed to the BSM w/V was within his discretion as the 
applicant’s commander. 

 

In correspondence dated 17 February 2011 the SAF/IGQ 
investigation considered the matter closed and advised the 
applicant of his option to petition the AFBCMR. 

 

DPSIDRA is unable to verify an injustice exists. 

 

The DPSIDRA complete evaluation, with attachment, is at Exhibit 
C. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

The applicant states he has not exhausted all of his remedies in 
regard to the AFCAM. He no longer desires the AFBCMR to consider 
his request for award of the AFCAM. 

 

The BSM w/V citation that was drafted for him and fraudulently 
omitted was for heroism involving acts of personal valor in Iraq 
in 2008. The Board should note that the proposed BSM w/V 
citation did not include any other non-valor tour accomplishments 
and was not intended as an end-of-tour award for outstanding 
achievement. AFI 36-2803 (2.4.3) and USAFCENT Decoration 
Guidebook (2.8) clearly indicates that a service member can 
receive two different category awards encompassing the same time 
period, provided that the same facts are not used. The evidence 
provided documents that his tour accomplishments were 
intentionally divided into valor and achievement categories. The 
AFCM received was an end-of-tour award based on his non-valor 
accomplishments which the evidence shows were separately 
documented from the valor actions. 

 

The applicant’s complete response is at Exhibit E. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 


 

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 that would 
warrant action by the Board. We note the applicant’s contentions 
that the BSM w/V for heroism was fraudulently omitted; however, 
we are not persuaded by the evidence submitted that this Board 
should award him the BSM w/V on the basis of error or injustice. 
While we are unable to review the results of the CDI firsthand, 
we note that the results are documented and indicate that the 
applicant’s allegations of unfair treatment were not 
substantiated. In the absence of such independent evidence 
confirming that the commander acted improperly and exceeded his 
discretionary authority, the evidence presented is simply 
insufficient to recommend the relief the applicant seeks. 
Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no 
basis to recommend granting the relief sought in this 
application. However, we have been advised by AFPC/DPSIDRA that 
the applicant could be submitted for the BSM w/V by his current 
commander contingent on the award recommendation meeting the 
criteria outlined in the governing instruction. 

 

4. The applicant's case is adequately documented and it has not 
been shown that a personal appearance with or without counsel 
will materially add to our understanding of the issues involved. 
Therefore, the request for a hearing is not favorably considered. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT: 

 

The applicant be notified the evidence presented did not 
demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice; the 
application was denied without a personal appearance; and 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-2011-02487 in Executive Session on 11 April 2012, under 
the provisions of AFI 36-2603: 

 

 

The following documentary evidence pertaining to AFBCMR Docket 
Number BC-2011-02487 was considered: 

 

 Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 5 June 2011, w/atchs. 

 Exhibit B. Applicant’s Master Personnel Record. 

 Exhibit C. Letter, AFPC/DPSIDRA, dated 3 August 2011, w/atch. 

 Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 26 August 2011. 

 Exhibit E. Letter, Applicant, dated 13 September 2011.