AIR FORCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD HEARING RECORD 

NAME OF SERVICE hlEMBER (LAST, FIRST MIDD1.E INITIAI,) 

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GRADE 

SSGT 

~ L ~ N S E ~ ,  

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NAML 01. ('OIIN9FI.  AND OR ORGANIZATION 

RECORD REVIEW 

X 
ADUllESS  AND O R  0IlC;ANIZATION  OF COIINSEI, 

YES 

No 

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MEMBER SITTING 

[ION 

I 

VOTE OF THE BOARD 
LE~HL. 

1  o 1 1  1 ~ 1 1  1 

C;EN 

DENY 

4 

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ISSUES  A94.05 

A67.50 

I 

I 

I 

EXHIBI'I'S SUBMITTED TO TW  & BOARD 

1  I  ORIIFK  \PPOIK.~NCI THE BO.4RI) 
2  WPLICAT[ON FOR  RFV1t.W  0 1  DISCHARGF 
3  1  LLTTCR O r  NOTIFIC'AI  ION 
4 
BRIEF OF PFRSONNtL kILC 
COUNSFL'S  KLLLASC T O  THF BOARD 
ADDITIONAI  bXHIBI 1's  SUBMITTFD 4 1  1 IhIL O r  
PFRSONAL APPLARANCE 

- 

1 

.1.A13t.: KECC)KDING  OF PERSONAL APPEARANCE 

1 

I 

Advise applicant of tlie decision of the Board, thc right to a personal  appearance with/wilhout  counsel, and thc right to 
submit an application to the AFBCMK 

Names and votes will be made available to thc applicant at tlie applicant's  request. 

1 u: 

SN:IMKUR 
550 C S'I'KLL'1'  WEST, SUITE 40 
KANL)OLIJH AFR, TX 78 150-4742 

SEC:lZL"l.\RY  OF TllE All< VORCE PERSONNEL COUNCll 
AIR IWRCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD 
1535 COMMAND DR. EL WING,3RD I ~ L O O H  
ANDRY\VS AFB, hlD 20762-7002 

AFHQ FORM 0-2077, JAN 00 

(EF-V2) 

Previous edition  will be used 

AIR FORCE DISCHARGE REVlEW BOARD DECISIONAL RATIONALE 

CASE NUMBER 

FD-2004-00489 

G E N E U L :  'I'lic applicant appeals for upgrade of discharge to honorable. 

The applicant was offered a personal appcarancc before  the Discharge Review Board  ( D M )  but declined to 
exercise this right. 

The attached brief contains availablc pertinent data on the applicant and the factors leading to the discharge. 

FINDINGS:  Upgrade of-discharge is denied. 

The  Board  finds  that  neither  the  evidence  of  record  nor  that  provided  by  the  applicant  substantiates  an 
inequity or impropriety that would justify  a changc of discharge. 

ISSUE: 

Applicant contends discharge was inequitable because it was too harsh and contends he should have been 
notified of all punitive IJCMJ actions being considered against him.  Thc records indicated that an 
Administrative Discharge package was staffed through comrna~~d channcls for member's misuse oS his 
Governn~cnt American Express Card by making unauthorized  charges and failing to pay the balance due. 
The dischargc package provided documentation ol'the unit's  efforts to contact applicant at time of 
processing the discharge package.  A legal review determined package was legally sufficient and 
recommended the commander discharge nicniber with a General dischargc.  The DRB opined that through 
these administrative actions, the applicant had ample opportunities to change his negative behavior.  The 
Board concluded the nlisconduct was a significant dcparturc from conduct expcctcd of all military members. 
The characterization of the discharge received by  the applicant was found to be appropriate. 

The DRB recognized the fact that the applicant had served over thirteen ycars total service before the 
discharge was initiated, but concluded the applicant's  misconduct outweighed the positive aspects of his 
time in the Air Force. 

CONCLUSIONS:  The  Discharge  Review  Board  concl~tdes that  the  discharge  was  consistent  with  the 
procedural  and  substantive  requirements  of  the  dischargc  regulatio~~ and  was  within  the  discrction  of  the 
discharge authority and that the applicant was provided full administrative duc process. 

111 view of the foregoing lindings the Board furthcr concludes that there exists no legal or equitable basis for 
upgrade of discharge, thus the applicant's discharge should not be changed. 

Attachment: 
Examiner's Brief 

----------------------------. 

ANDREWS AFB,  MD 

DEPARTMENT OF THE A I R   FORCE 

AIR  FORCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD 

L - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - .  

1.  MATTER UNDER REVIEW:  Appl recrd a GEN Disch fr Peterson AFB, CO on 6  Aug  98 
UP AFI 36-3209, para 3.21.3.4  (Pattern of Misconduct -  Commission of a Serious 
Offense -  Other Serious Offense).  Appeals for Honorable Discharge. 

(Former SRA)  (HGH SSGT) 

MISSING DOCUMENTS 

2.  BACKGROUND: 

a. DOB: 11 Mar 60.  Enlmt Age:  23 1/12.  Disch Age: 28 4/12. Educ: HS DIPL. 

AFQT: N/A.  A-68,  E-72,  G-65,  M-41. PAFSC: 2A551 - Aerospace Maintenance 
Journeyman. DAS: 20 J u l   94. 

b.  Prior Sv:  (1) USARes 28 Apr 83 -  09 May 83  (12 days)(Inactive). 

Reenlisted as S P 4 ( E 4 )   14 Jan 86 for 5 yrs.  Svd: 7 yss  11 months 8 days, all AMS. 
Sgt(E5)-12 Oct  86.  No performance reports. 

(2) Enlisted US Army as Pvt (El) 10 May 83 for 3 yrs. 

yrs 8 months 4 days, of which AMS is 8 months 23 days. No performance reports. 

(3) Enlisted USAFRes as S S g t ( E 5 )   28 Jun 91 for 6 yrs.  Svd:  5 

3.  SERVICE UNDER REVIEW: 

a.  Reenlisted USAFRes as SSgt(E5) 2 Mar 97 for 6  yrs. Svd: 00 Yrs 05 Mo 05 

Das, all Inactive. 

b.  Grade Status:  SrA -  5  Mas 98  (Demotion letter, 5 Dec 97)(~issing from 

file) . 

c .   Time Lost:  None. 

d.  Art 1 5 ' s :   Unknown. 

e.  Additional: Financial Irresponsibility -  Abused government American 

Express Card by making unauthorized purchases and by  failing to pay the 
balance. 

f .   CM:  None. 

g.  Record of SV: None. 

h.  Awards &  Decs:  ARGCM W/2  DEVS, SAEMR, AROSSR w/2 DEVS, AFTR, ARMY NCO 

PPRO DEV RBN, NDSM, ARSR, ARAM W/2 DEVS, ARFMERSM. 

i.  Stmt of Sv:  TMS:  (15) Yrs  (03) Mos  (07) Das 
TAMS:  ( 0 8 )   Yrs  (08) Mos  (04) Das 

4 .   BASIS ADVANCED FOR  REVIEW:  Appln  (DD Fm 293) dtd 02 Dec  04. 

(Change Discharge to Honorable) 

ISSUES ATTACHED TO BRIEF. 

ATCH 
1. Applicant's  Issues. 
2. DD Form 149. 
3 .  American Express Letter in Receipt  of  Payment. 
4 .   Letter of Explanation and Discharge Upgrade Request 
5. Conduct  of An Article  15. 

RE:  LETTER  OF EXPLINATION and Request to change Discharge status from General under Honorable 
Conditions to full "Honarable"  status: 

Thursday, December 02,2004 

To Whom It May Concern: 

Due to what I believe is an administrative error reducing my rank to Senior Airman, plus being discharged 
with a general under honorable conditions, I would very much like a review board to look at the evidence on 
file from an outstanding bill from American Express telling me I never paid the bill, thus, barring me from 
reenlistment and continuing my duties with the Air force Reserves.  The debt was in deed paid.  I also found 
out that I deliberately defied regulation using the card while on a personal trip.  I only used the American 
Express Government Card when I received permission fiom American Express to put the remaining charges 
on the government card as long as I paid the bill immediately upon my return from Orlando's  Disney World 
on 22 May  1997.  There was NO intent to deceive anvone or any governbent agency in the matter with 
American Express.  My two personal credit cards from Capital One anQFwsC~ank of Colorado were stolen 
along with other contents in my wallet n the hotel I was st3yhgatge#$i&f 
Thus, 1 phoned AMEX 
Gov  Card  Services immediately and  spoke with  Mr.  Fern  d&\ 
,get  permission  to  use  t h ~ s  card  in  this 

instance so I could basically get home.  I then phon~&n&fiTamde 3 b  ofice at Peterson AFB and spoke with a 

"3-%$ - 

woman  SSGT who  informed me  "as long as tha d  bt  r$pald  no questions will be asked, but  be  ready to 
explain the situation should it ever arise and ge~ai', urns SSGT Gamblm".  I told her, y n e ,  will do".  I  assure 
&k&h  that  there  was  again, NO  intent  to  fraudulently  use  the 
the  members that  are 
American Express Government 

k "4,"*,~ 
k 

This could pose a problem 
clearly  not  my  fault 
enclosed letter from August of 1997. 

for government employment should ever be needed.  This is 
Government  Card  Services  knows  this  as  mentioned  in  the 

I should have  been  notified of all  punitive  UCMJ  action being considered against me  IAW FM  27-1,  FM 
2701,  and Article 1 3 8 ~ .  The unit had my address and phone number + I kept in contact with the unit after my 
resignation letter was sent in for review.  I was never notified of such actions against me while still in the unit 
at home  even before  my  resignation  letter  was  sent.  I  should have  received  a  notification  of  appeal  or 
something in accordance with my rights under UCMJ.  According to regulation, my rights were clearly not 
adhered to.  According an exert of Chapter 4 froin FM 27-1, as an example in the highlighted areas indicated 
on  the  following pages,  the  procedure  of  UCMJ  action  was  clearly  not  followed  properly  to  what  the 
regulation is saying. 

Because  of  the  above-mentioned information,  this  action  taken  against me,  plus,  how  it  ended  up  in  my 
records  up to  the time  of discharge should be  invalid.  Correct procedure was,  in  accordance with the  for 
mentioned regulation, never was followed properly during this whole matter. 

Article 138 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) gives every member of the Armed Forces the right to complain that he 
or she was wronged by his or her commanding officer. The right even extends to those subject to the UCMJ on inactive duty for 
training or being considered for administrative discharge. 

Fw?ms-m @BY 
I am asking the board to consider the following in correcting the negative information In my file and return my 
rank to E-5 with an upgrade in discharge to full "Honorable"  status.  Below, if this board finds that certain 
injustice was done, can take the necessary highlighted action; 

Set-aside. You may set aside an Article 15 when you are convinced that an injustice has occurred. When you 
set  aside  an  Article  15, return  all  rights,  privileges,  and  property. A  set-aside  would  be  appropriate,  for 
instance, in a case in which new evidence or information proves the accused is innocent. 

Finally, as a final comment to the review officerhoard, I want to  express my deepest thanks in taking your 
valuable time in reviewing this information for me.  There was NEVER any intent to defraud the government 
on any  level of  the  mentioned offenses in  my  records.  I had  an excellent service record  and  was  being 
considered for a TDY tour to  Oman when this  situation came about.  I am a good  honest person  that  has 
served his country well in peacetime and war.  I would appreciate your attention in this matter. 

Sincerely: 

2 Exert from AR  27-10,27-1  CHAPTER 4 Nonjudicial Punishment PROVISIONS OF UCMJ / Rights under Article 138 Uniform 
PnAe n f  hA;li+*r.r  h~rtire 

~ 

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I 

DEPARTMENT O F  THE AIR  FORCE 

AIR FORCE RESERVE COMMAND 

MEMORANDUM FOR! 

........................................ 

1 7  APR 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  

FROM:  HQ AFRCfDP 

155 2nd St 
Robins AFB GA  3 1098-1635 

SUBJECT:  Notification of Initiation of Separation Action under AFI 36-3209 

1.  By  this  memorandum,  separation  action  is  being  initiated  against  you  for  misconduct, 
commission of a serious offense, other serious offense.  The authority for this separation action is 
AFI 36-3209, Chapter 3,  paragraph 3.21.3.4.  Information regarding your entitlement to submit 
statements about your case, the l a h l  usage of such statements and their disclosure is provided in 
the attached Privacy Act  Statement (Atch  1).  A  description of the  reasons for this  separation 
action  is  set  forth  in  the  attached  Statement  of  Reasons  (Atch  2)  along  with  supporting 
documents.  AFI 36-3209 is available for your review at your servicing Military Personnel Flight. 
The types of separation authorized  are Honorable, General (Under Honorable Conditions)  and 
Under Other Than Honorable Conditions.  The type of separation recommended in your case is a 
General (Under Honorable Conditions) Discharge. 

2.  Within  24  hours  afker  you  receive  this  memorandum,  you  must  complete and  return  the 
attached acknowledgment of receipt (Atch 3) of this memorandum and the attachments thereto. 

3.  The following is a summary of your rights: 

a.  You  are  entitled  to  consult  with  a  military  legal  counsel who  is  qualified under  Article 
27(B)(1),  Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ),  at  no cost to you.  You--may-a@ consult 
with  civilian legal counsel of your choice, but  at your own expense.  captain! , - - - - - - - - - ?  :  a Judge 
Advocate who is qualified under Article 27@)(1), UCMJ, has been designated to represent you in 
connection  with  this  separation  action.  Her  mailing  address  is  HQ  AFRC/JAS,  155  2nd  St, 
Robins AFB GA 3 1098-1635.  Her phone numbers are DSN 497-1588,  1-800-458-5391, or (912) 
327-1588. 

b.  You have the right to submit pertinent  statements andlor documents in your behalf which 
you desire to be considered in the disposition of your case.  If  you elect to exercise your right to 
submit statements, and you return the attached form (Atch 4) within  15 days of receipt, you  may 
submit statements or documents at any time during the administrative discharge process.  Your 
decision  on  requesting  or  waiving  the  board  hearing  does  not  affect  your  right  to  submit 
statements or documents during the administrative discharge process.  The form must  be  signed 
legal  counsel  and  returned  to HQ AFRC/DPM,  155 2nd St, Robins 
either  by  you  or  your 
AFl3 GA 31098-1635. 

c.  If you  need  additional time to respond to this separation action, either you  or your  legal 
counsel may submit a written request to HQ AFRC/DPM,  155 2nd  St, Robins AFB  GA 31098- 
1635, for an extension of time,  stating why you  need  the extra time and how much you'll  need. 
The request must be submitted in sufficient time to reach this office within 15 days after receipt of 
this memorandum. 

4.  You are eligible for an administrative discharge board.  Within  15 days after you  receive this 
memorandum, you may request to have your case heard  by  an administrative discharge board  at 
this  headquarters  by  completing  and  returning the  attached  form  (Atch  5)  requesting  a  board 
hearing.  If you  desire a board  hearing, you  must  mail  the  completed form in  sufficient time to 
reach this headquarters within  15 days after your receipt of this memorandum.  Othewise, your 
right  to have your  case heard  by  an  administrative discharge board  will  be considered waived. 
Within 15 days after you receive this memorandum, you  may waive your right to have your case 
heard by  an administrative discharge board by  completing and returning the attached form (Atch 
6), evidencing your waiver.  Information 
is 
provided  at Attachment 7. 

regarding  an  administrative  discharge  board 

5.  You are not eligible to apply for transfer to the Retired Reserve. 

6.  You should note that failure to respond on the selection of one of these options, or failure to 
request a delay within  15 days after you  receive this memorandum, will  constitute waiver of all 
your rights.  This includes the right to have your case heard by an administrative discharge board, 
and will result in your case being processed on the basis of all the evidence then available. 

7.  Return envelopes are attached (Atch 8) for your convenience. 

-----------------------------------------------n----------, 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -  
Director o r  Personnel 

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Attachments: 
1.  Privacy Act Statement 
2.  Statement of Reasons wl 
Supporting Documentation 
3.  Acknowledgment of Receipt 
4.  Selection of Rights 
5.  Request for Board Hearing 
6.  Waiver of Board Hearing 
7.  Discharge Board Info 
8.  Envelopes (2) 

cc: 
HQ AFRC/JAS 
302"~ MSSDPMSA wo Attachments