Is it possible for a US Army Soldier to get a job when they have a other than honorable discharge?

Question

I have a friend who was kicked out of the Army for smoking pot. The army took the words from two soldiers mouth (hear-say) and kicked a very good soldier out. I want to say it was racially motivated but wish not to confuse the american public with such a true statement. now this soldier/ex-soldier is screwed. This soldier fails every jobs background check because of the pot smoking discharge. The soldier recently got a up graded discharge which mean nothing because the record still stands. My friend has tried suicide and is still here, I want to help but I don't know where to turn. This entire situation has been the down fall of a wonderful person. In mentioning the army my friend snaps. I totally understand why this soldier/ex-soldier is so angry. Do you know what to do in order to change my friends records? can my friend seek some sort of legal action even though this happened in the army? What can we as americans and friends do to help a friend who has been treated so unjustly?

facts:
my friend is a female and never smoked pot. she never failed a p*ss test. she was accused of being lesbian and was injured in a humvee accident and was told friendly fire will happen to her when she goes to iraq. she was seen smoking a hand rolled cig. and the backwood sheet wearer's told the good ole' boys she was smoking pot! she was tired of fighting and figured she'd get a fair trial/chance in the real world.

Answer 1

When you get discharged you recieve a DD-214 form (a long form and a short form). The long form illustrates their reenlistment code and characteristic of discharge and the short form does not. Most civilian employers are not aware of this and would more than likely settle for the short form version to demonstrate proof of service. However, in order to acquire VA benefits, Federal or Civil employment you will need to provide proof of an honorable discharge...the long form. As for the "unjust" conditions and possible "racially motivated" conspiracy...you may want to understand how the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) works before you get sucked too deep into another sob story. You may not want to hear this, but your "friend" may not be as forthcoming as you may want to believe. Just as in civilian law, the UCMJ does have a system of due process. To simply accuse someone of an illegal activity does not cut it. Drug use in the military is a Court Martial offense, and if convicted can recieve brig time and less than desirable discharge. It sounds to me that two witnesses came forward and reported what they observed or thought. This very well would have prompted the command to initiate a "random" drug test throughout the unit (with your friend on the list of course). If the test comes back positive or inconclusive, they will have the subject test again immediatly to confirm the results. Once they have enough evidence, it is upon the Command's discretion to pursue the matter with a Court Martial or Non-Judicial Punishment (a lower punitive level of action...99% of the time it would be a Court Martial). Bottom line...the military cannot discharge you if the punishment is maintained at NJP level, but a Court Martial can. And with a Court Martial, evidence not "heresay" is required in order to render a verdict of guilty...i.e drug testing results. Now after reading all this, you may want to reconsider your stance regarding this individual's character and integrity. If your "friend" still maintains their "innocence", then by all means, encourage him to the fullest extent to seek legal representation. There are plenty of civilian lawyers out their that specialize in military matters and they could pursue this in a civil suit suing the military (IF of-course the truth is really on the table, the lawyers will recognize it immediatly...and believe me if it's true they'll be on it like sharks on dead tuna). However, I would bet the farm and a years salary that your "poor" friend will opt to not pursue the matter and instead will cry about it and blame others for his lack of judgement...it's called denial. If he does say that he wants to take action, it will be just to pacify your conviction. When in reality he'll drag his feet, make excuses and never really get around to it. The best way for him to heal, is to man-up to his mistakes and to push forward.

SEMPER FI

Answer 2

You can't get a dishonorable discharge if they are "Kicking" you out. The only way you can receive a dishonorable discharge is if you are given a general courts-martial, found guilty and be given the punishment of a dishonorable discharge, but only if there's a charge you were found guility where a dishonorable discharge is authorized punishment. When one speaks of getting "kicked out", that usually means they are going to administratively separate you from the Army. There are only 3 possible discharge types for administrative separations: Honorable, General, or Other Than Honorable(OTH). Because this sounds like an involuntary separations that brings it down to either a General or OTH. Which one you will receive is dependant on the "Chapter" you are being separated under. @Wine, FYI, a soldier can receive a BCD from a special courts-martial with BCD authority. It doesn't have to be a general courts-martial.

Answer 3

Hearsay is second-hand knowledge. If these two people claimed to have actually seen your friend smoking pot, it isn't hearsay. They were witnesses. People die in the electric chair based on the testimony of witnesses, so they can certainly expell a soldier for a lessor offense.

That said, a simple urine test would verify, or disclaim, any such witness statements, if given within 30 days of the "inhale". And if these "witnesses" waited longer than that to report, the Army wouldn't follow up anyway.

Someone's not telling the complete story. My guess is your friend may not completely understand the Armies reasons, and the process. My gut says your friend may not be too bright.

A dishonorable, or less than honorable, discharge is not a felony or a crime. How would anyone know they were less than honorably discharged?

Answer 4

So your friend did not dispute it when she was "caught" / questioned? I find it hard to believe she did not have to take a piss test for proof since we all know pot stays in your system for a couple days.... I smell bogus or incomplete info.... The military would do it's paper work, and not just "kick out" someone based on what 2 other troops say. Did she have a military trial? What exactly were the charges?

Answer 5

He would have had to fail a urine test. He would have not been discharged on hearsay. Your friend is lying. If it were done on hearsay he could sue and re-enlist, or get an honorable discharge if he were near his tour end. The Army proof of this, or he was discharged for a different reason, but trust me, he is not telling the whole truth.

Answer 6

I have a few friends who have gotten less than honorable discharges for smoking pot during the 'Nam era One has his own business and is doing quite well 2 other friends are working in the construction trades and are also doing quite well so yes it is possible

Answer 7

Former soldiers can get jobs even when discharged for smoking pot as long as the employers do not consider it as a denial or against company policies.

Answer 8

What type of job are they applying for? Maybe they are trying to go for too big of a job like a CEO. If they go for something smaller (I don't mean minimum wage or Micky D's something in the 30-40K range) in the corporate ladder and work their way up they should be good to go. With good work ethic it's not hard to work your way up.

Answer 9

Don't ask, don't tell. Just don't try for a TSA or other job that does a deep background check. There are plenty of positions out there.

Answer 10

Yes, it's possible, but harder to do.

Are you sure you're getting the whole truth from your friend? I find it difficult to believe that they would discharge him OTH on the basis of hearsay only and not because he actually flunked at least one p*ss test.