Be Careful Where You Apply When You Pad Your Resume

Resume-padding is a problem in every industry, although it takes a certain amount of chutzpah to claim credentials one never achieved.  If one is going to pad a resume, however, it might be a good idea to avoid embellishing your record when it involves a different branch of the same government where you once served.  Jason Romain served for a bit over a year in the Air Force in the mid-1980s, and his record was undistinguished, to say the least, with a discharge as an "entry level separation" because he failed "to meet physical standards for enlistment."  When he applied 13 years later for a position as a police officer with the Department of Veteran Affairs, his record showed four years of service, discharge as a senior airman, a purple heart and a medal for service in the Grenada invasion (remember how well that one went?).  It may have taken a while (over six years), but the misstatements have caught up with Romain because he has been indicted in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (here) on four charges.  In addition to a Sec. 1001 charge for making a false statement and a charge of altering his military discharge papers, there are two counts for crimes I have never seen before: Sec. 702 for unauthorized wearing of an Air Force uniform, and Sec. 704 for unauthorized wearing of medal and ribbons (including in this count a Liberation of Kuwait ribbon).  One can talk about dressing-up a resume, but actually putting on the uniform is something different. (ph)