DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY
BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS
                                               2 NAVY ANNEX
 						WASHINGTON DC 20370-5100

										   TRG
Docket No: 6743-06
2 February 2007

From:	Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records
To:	Secretary of the Navy

Subj:	REVIEW OF NAVAL RECORD 

Ref:	(a) Title 10 U.S.C. 1552

End:	(1) Case Summary
(2) Subject’s naval record

1.	Pursuant to the provisions of reference (a), Petitioner, an enlisted member of the Marine Corps, filed an application with this Board requesting that 17 months of time in grade earned in a previous enlistment be added to his current time in grade.

2.	The Board, consisting of Ms. Ms. reviewed Petitioner’s allegations of error and
injustice on 9 January 2007 and, pursuant to its regulations, determined that the corrective action indicated below should be taken on the available evidence of record. Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of the enclosures, naval records, and applicable statutes, regulations and policies.

3.	The Board, having reviewed all the facts of record pertaining to Petitioner’s allegations of error and injustice, finds as follows:

a.	Before applying to this Board, Petitioner exhausted all administrative remedies available under existing law and regulations within the Department of the Navy.

b.	Petitioner’s application was filed in a timely manner.

c.	Petitioner enlisted in the Marine Corps on 15 May 1995 at age 20. He then served in an excellent manner for several years and was promoted to corporal (CPL; E-4). On 7 April 1998 he had surgery on his right knee. He was unable to recover from the surgery and could not complete the run portion of the physical fitness test. Because of his inability to run, he was not promoted to sergeant (SGT; E-5). On 15 October 1999 he was honorably discharged by reason of physical disability with severance pay and was assigned an RE-3P reenlistment code. The DD Form 214 indicates that the effective date of his promotion to CPL was 1 May 1998.

		

		d.      A report from a Department of Veterans Affairs doctor, dated 27 January 2006, states that Petitioner was experiencing incapacitating knee pain. Therefore, exploratory surgery was conducted. The surgery revealed that the pain resulted from a mass of scar tissue surrounding suture material which had been left in the knee at the time of his first surgery in April 1998. The doctor stated that Petitioner had an excellent result, was pain free and stable, and was running four miles a day without pain or instability.

e.	Petitioner then immediately attempted to reenlist in the~ Marine Corps. On 28 February 2006, the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery recommended a waiver of the physical standards. He reenlisted in the Marine Corps on 22 March 2006 at age 31 in the grade of CPL with a date of rank as of the date of reenlistment. He was apparently able to accomplish this reenlistment in such a short period of time because he received assistance from Marines with whom he had previously served.

f.	With his application Petitioner has submitted several excellent character references, one of which is from a master gunnery sergeant, the Public Affairs Chief of the Marine Corps, who enthusiastically endorses Petitioner’s request to regain the time in grade he lost as corporal upon his medical discharge. On 11 October 2006, he was the distinguished honor graduate of the Basic Public Affairs Specialist Writers Course, and has also received several meritorious masts.

CONCLUSION:

Upon review and consideration of all the evidence of record the Board concludes that Petitioner’s request warrants favorable action. Concerning his request to grant him the 17 months time in grade he previously earned as a CPL, the Board believed that favorable action was certainly reasonable. It is clear that with the extra 17 months time in grade, he would immediately be promoted to SGT, a grade he would have held except for the botched surgery in April 1998. He could then most likely make a persuasive case that the Board should backdate that promotion to the date of reenlistment.

Given the circumstances, the Board concludes that the most appropriate action is to correct the record to show that Petitioner reenlisted on 22 March 2006 in the grade of SGT with a date of rank as of the date of reenlistment.

The Board further concludes that this Report of Proceedings should be filed in Petitioner’s naval record so that all future reviewers will understand the reasons for the change in Petitioner’ s record.

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RECOMMENDATION:

a. That Petitioner’s naval record be corrected to show that on 22 March 2006 he reenlisted in the Marine Corps in the grade of SGT with a date of rank of that date.

b. That this Report of Proceedings be filed in Petitioner’s naval record.

4. It is certified that a quorum was present at the Board’s review and deliberations, and that the foregoing is a true and complete record of the Board’s proceedings in the above entitled matter.

ROBERT D. ZSALMAN	ALAN E. GOLDSMITH
Recorder	Acting Recorder

5. Pursuant to the delegation of authority set out in Section 6(e) of the revised Procedures of the Board for Correction of Naval Records. (32 Code of Federal Regulations, Section 723.6(e)) and having assured compliance with its provisions, it is hereby announced that the foregoing corrective action, taken under the authority of reference (a), has been approved by the Board on behalf of the Secretary of the Navy.

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