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Yeah, I was reminded reading the information how big of a deal a DD is, loss of the right to vote, and no firearms, never mind GI Bill or veterans preference hiring, home loans. Did he find it difficult to get hired in the civilian world.

I’m guessing here, but it’s almost a certainty he spent at least a few years in the hoosegow - either a military prison like Leavenworth or a civilian prison. What was his MOS?

UPDATE: Evening all. I finally got feedback, and documentation, from my congressman, Rudy Yakym. Enclosed in the documentation is a NA Form 13038, Certification of Military Service, and it is Honorable. The cover letter also reads as follows:

Thank you for contacting the National Personnel Records Center. The record needed to answer your inquiry is not in our files. If the record were here on July 12, 1973, it would have been in the area that suffered the most damage in the fire on that date and may have been destroyed. The fire destroyed the major portion of records of Army military personnel for the period 1912 through 1959, and records of Air Force personnel with surnames Hubbard through Z for the period 194 7 through 1963. Fortunately, there are alternate records sources that often contain information which can be used to reconstruct service record data lost in the fire; however, complete records cannot be reconstructed. All available documents are attached.

We are enclosing NA Form 13038, Certification of Military Service. This document verifies military service and may be used for any official purpose. A seal has been affixed to this document to attest to its authenticity. The information used to prepare the enclosed NA Form 13038 was obtained from an alternate record source.

This response was delivered electronically. A watermark of the NARA emblem has been digitally applied in lieu of a raised seal and may serve any official purpose. This watermark has been affixed to the separation document(s) to attest to its authenticity.

Along with the 13038, they also included recovered documents, of which there was very few and many of them have burn marks along the edges.

So, according to all available sources my father does NOT have a dishonorable discharge in his records, and where my sisters found the one they have is beyond me to explain. But now I have to convince my sister to pursue the VA to get benefits for my mother because she's afraid to confront the governmental bureaucracy sure to be thrown at her.