Craig Harris

The Republic | azcentral.com

Ashley Christopher, a military veteran, said she was forced to sell her home over a bonus dispute.

The Nevada National Guard, which sought repayment of the bonus, said she didn't properly appeal in 2012.

Ashley Christopher, whose nearly 10 years in the military included stints in Iraq and Afghanistan, spends her days in downtown Phoenix helping homeless veterans find housing.

But the 33-year-old might soon be on the streets herself.

Christopher said she was forced to sell her home to try to repay the government, which threatened to garnish her wages because of a dispute over whether she fulfilled her Army National Guard commitment and was entitled to a $15,000 bonus. A National Guard spokesman said Christopher could have cleared up the problem in 2012, but did not do so, triggering the current controversy.

"I don't have anywhere to go," Christopher said Wednesday. "It wouldn't be a big deal if I didn't have two dogs. But couch surfing with two dogs is a lot to ask of my friends."

Christopher said she fulfilled her National Guard duties and was honorably discharged in February 2015.

But problems with the federal government began last August, when she received an $11,079 bill from the U.S. Treasury Department, alleging she didn't fulfill the full terms of her military contract. She disputed the claim and didn't pay the tab, causing the bill to rise to $14,182 in November, when interest was added.

In December, she said the government informed her that her wages would be garnished unless she started a repayment plan of nearly $400 a month.

So, she put her house on the market. It recently sold. The closing date is March 1, but she said the new buyers are letting her live in the home until the middle of next month.

She added that the government also confiscated an $841 federal tax refund because of her debt.

"They took all of it. I knew they probably would take it, but I thought they would leave me a percentage," Christopher said. "They didn't even leave me enough for a six pack of beer to grieve."

Christopher said around February 2009, while deployed in Iraq, she re-enlisted for six years as a military police officer with the Arizona National Guard.

A year later, she said, the Nevada National Guard sought soldiers for deployment to Afghanistan, and she was asked to transfer.

Christopher transferred and then served in Afghanistan for a year until January 2012. She was honorably discharged three years later.

At issue is her transfer to the Nevada National Guard without completing the Arizona National Guard duties for which she was paid the bonus.

Robert Freese, an Arizona National Guard spokesman, said the Nevada National Guard initiated the effort to seek repayment of her Arizona Guard enlistment bonus and referred all questions to that agency.

Lt. Col. Mickey Kirschenbaum of the Nevada National Guard said there is no dispute that Christoper served her six-year commitment.

However, he said her voluntary transfer violated terms of the bonus because she had re-enlisted for a "critical needs" career area within the Arizona National Guard. He said Christoper received two certified letters in 2012 that explained how she could appeal so that she could retain her bonus.

Kirschenbaum said Christopher did not appeal at that time, and the Nevada National Guard had no choice but to try to recover the bonus because it was given for a job she did not completely fulfill.

Kirschenbaum said Christopher may now appeal to the U.S. Army.

"Unfortunately, there is not a lot we can do. She has to submit the paperwork. We can't. If she asks for a statement, we can provide that," Kirschenbaum said. "The National Guard just can't wave a wand."

Christopher, also a graduate student at Arizona State University, hopes to avoid repaying the bonus and use the funds from her home sale to find another place to live.

Said Christopher: "I'm getting punished because they said they needed soldiers and they wanted to know if I was available — and I said 'Yes.' "