Docket No: 2707-20
Ref: Signature Date



Dear  
 
This is in reference to your application for correction of your naval record pursuant to Section 1552 of Title 10, United States Code.  After careful and conscientious consideration of relevant portions of your naval record and your application, the Board for Correction of Naval Records (Board) found the evidence submitted insufficient to establish the existence of probable material error or injustice.  Consequently, your application has been denied.     
 
A three-member panel of the Board, sitting in executive session, considered your application on 9 April 2021.  The names and votes of the members of the panel will be furnished upon request.  Your allegations of error and injustice were reviewed in accordance with administrative regulations and procedures applicable to the proceedings of this Board.  Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of your application, together with all material submitted in support thereof, relevant portions of your naval record, and applicable statutes, regulations, and policies.  The Board also considered the 4 March 2020 advisory opinion (AO) furnished by the Marine Corps Performance Evaluation Review Board.  Although you were afforded an opportunity to submit a rebuttal, you did not do so. 
 
The Board carefully considered your request to remove the fitness report covering the period from 1 January 2019 to 24 January 2019.  The Board considered your contention that the claims pertaining directly to the command investigation, which you had to request via the Freedom of Information Act, were found unsubstantiated.  The Board also considered your contention your fitness report was improperly processed because the Third Officer Sighter (3OS) sent the report back to the Reviewing Officer for rebuttal rather than forwarding for processing.  Further, the Board considered your handwritten contentions on the supporting documents submitted with your petition.   
 
The Board, however, substantially concurred with the AO.  The Board noted that although the originating causal factors for the command investigation were not fully substantiated, evidence of unduly familiar relationships with two female sergeants in your company resulted in you being relieved of your duties and receiving an Administrative Remarks (Page 11) 6105 counseling entry which subsequently served as derogatory material and a basis for adversity in the contested fitness report.  Although you repeatedly contend the relationships were not unduly familiar because they were “not under [your] command nor in [your] platoon,” the Board concurred with the AO and concluded improper relationships and/or communications are not limited to direct chain of command relationships.  The Board also concluded it was not a material error or unjust for the 3OS to send the report back to the RO for rebuttal instead of forwarding for continued processing.  Based on the available evidence, the Board concluded there was insufficient evidence of an error or injustice to warrant granting your requested relief.   
 
You are entitled to have the Board reconsider its decision upon submission of new matters, which will require you to complete and submit a new DD Form 149.  New matters are those not previously presented to or considered by the Board.  In this regard, it is important to keep in mind that a presumption of regularity attaches to all official records.  Consequently, when applying for a correction of an official naval record, the burden is on the applicant to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice.   
 
 Sincerely,