Docket No: 5252-20             
Ref: Signature Date 
  
Dear  
 
This is in reference to your application for correction of your naval record pursuant to Title 10, United States Code, Section 1552.  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 was insufficient to establish the existence of probable material error or injustice.  Consequently, your application has been denied. 
 
Although your application was not filed in a timely manner, the Board found it in the interest of justice to waive the statute of limitations and consider your application on its merits.  A three-member panel of the Board, sitting in executive session, considered your application on 10 August 2020.  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, as well as applicable statutes, regulations, and policies. 
 
You enlisted in the Navy and began a period of active duty on 15 July 1999.  On 30 September 1999, you embarked on a period of unauthorized absence (UA) and did not return until 29 October 2001.  Upon your return, you were charged with violation of Article 86 (UA) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and placed in pretrial restriction.  Subsequently, on 8 November 2001, you requested an administrative discharge under other than honorable (OTH) conditions, in lieu of trial by court-martial.  Your request was approved and you were discharged from the Navy on 11 December 2001, with OTH characterization of service and a reentry (RE) code of RE-4. 
 
In your application for consideration, you ask that your discharge characterization be upgraded from OTH to Honorable.  You state that you were misinformed of your career path and your enlistment into the Navy.  You were an 18 year-old female in a male-dominated environment, and you were anxious and distressed.  You further state that you regret not going to your superiors and that if you could go back and change the outcome, you would.  Since your discharge, you have attended college and had a family.  You would like to regain a position with the government, and would like an upgrade to provide a better future for your children. 
 
The Board, in its review of your entire record and application, carefully weighed all potentially mitigating factors, including your youth at the time of your service as well as the challenges you faced at the start of your enlistment.  The Board considered your post-discharge achievements and your desire to return to federal service.  However, the Board found that the length of your period of UA from September 1999 through October 2001, combined with your request for an administrative discharge to avoid court-martial proceedings, supported your OTH characterization of service.  The Board concluded that your current discharge characterization is neither erroneous nor unjust, and corrective action is not warranted. 
 
It is regretted that the circumstances of your case are such that favorable action cannot be taken.  You are entitled to have the Board reconsider its decision upon the 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,