DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 Docket No: 0300-20 Ref: Signature Date From: Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records To: Secretary of the Navy Ref: (a) 10 U.S.C. § 1552 (b) 10 U.S.C. 654 (Repeal) (c) UNSECDEF Memo of 20 Sep 11 (Correction of Military Records Following Repeal of 10 U.S.C. 654 Encl: (1) DD Form 149 with attachments 1. Pursuant to the provisions of reference (a), Petitioner, a former enlisted Sailor, filed enclosure (1) with the Board for Correction of Naval Records (Board) requesting an upgraded characterization of service. 2. The Board, consisting of , reviewed Petitioner’s allegations of error and injustice on 30 January 2020, and, pursuant to its regulations, determined the corrective action indicated below should be taken on the available evidence of record. Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of the enclosures, relevant portions of naval service records, as well as 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. Although enclosure (1) was not filed in a timely manner, it is in the interest of justice to review the application on its merits. c. Petitioner enlisted in the Navy on 15 February 1995. On 12 April 1996, Petitioner admitted “homosexual traits” to her supervisor. On 18 June 1996, she admitted to participating in homosexual acts while in an unauthorized absence (UA) status. On 27 June 1996, Petitioner received nonjudicial punishment for a 29-day UA, missing movement, and sodomy. Subsequently, administrative discharge action was initiated by reason of misconduct due to commission of a serious offense and homosexual conduct. After Petitioner waived her rights, her commanding officer recommended discharge with an other than honorable (OTH) characterization of service by reasons of misconduct due to commission of a serious offense and homosexual conduct. The discharge authority approved the recommendation and directed her OTH discharge by reason of misconduct. On 27 July 1996, Petitioner was discharged with an OTH characterization of service and assigned a RE-4 (not recommended for reenlistment) reentry code. d. In a statement at the time of the misconduct, Petitioner’s supervisor explained that Petitioner approached her about being uncomfortable getting underway and being in the female berthing since she had been having homosexual feelings. The supervisor stated that Petitioner requested leave to “go home on leave because of her homosexual problem.” Petitioner contends she was “going through a rough part of my life where Iwas confused, not sure where I was supposed to fit in.” e. Reference (c) sets forth the Department of the Defense’s current policies, standards, and procedures for correction of military records following the “don’t ask, don’t tell” (DADT) repeal of 10 U.S.C. 654. It provides service Discharge Review Boards with guidance to grant requests to change the characterization of service to “honorable,” narrative reason for discharge to “secretarial authority,” SPD code to “JFF,”and reenlistment code to “RE-1J,” when the original discharge was based solely on DADT or a similar policy in place prior to enactment of it and there are no aggravating factors in the record, such as misconduct. CONCLUSION: Upon review and consideration of all the evidence of record, and especially in light of references (b) and (c), theBoard concludes Petitioner’s request warrants relief. The Board noted Petitioner’s record supports that she was discharged on the basis of homosexuality and commission of a serious offense. The Board concluded the UA and missing movement resulted from her chain of command’s handling of her homosexual admission and determined equity allowed for an honorable characterization of service because the remainder of her record warranted an honorable characterization. RECOMMENDATION: In view of the above, the Board directs the following corrective action: Petitioner be issued a new DD Form 214 indicating the characterization of service as “honorable”, narrative reason for separation as “secretarial authority,” separation code as “JFF,” separation authority as “MILPERSMAN 1910-164”, and reentry code as “RE-1J”. No further changes be made to Petitioner’s record. A copy of this report of proceedings be filed in Petitioner’s naval record. Upon request, the VA beinformed that Petitioner’s application was received by the Board on 27 December 2019. 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. 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 Regulation, 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.