DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY 

BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 
701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 
ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 

Docket No: 2778-17 
OCT 12 2018 

From: Chainnan, Board for Correction of 
To: Secretary of the Navy aval Records 

Subj: REVIEW OF AVAL RECORD OF 

Ref: (a) 10 U.S.C. 1552 
     (b) l 0 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: (I) DD Form 149 (NR20170002778) 
      (2) Case summary 

1. Pursuant to the provisions of reference (a), Petitioner, a former enlisted member of the Navy, 
filed enclosure (1) with this Board requesting, a change to reenlistment code, reason for 
discharge, and his characterization ofservice as reflected on his Certificate of Release or 
Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214). Enclosures (I) through (2) apply. 

2. The Board, consisting of , reviewed Petitioner's 
allegations of error and injustice on 19 June 2018, 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, relevant portions of 
his naval service 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. Although enclosure (1) was not filed in a timely manner, it is in the interest ofjustice to 
review the application on its merits. 

c. Petitioner enlisted in the Navy and began a period ofactive duty on 26 June 1978. 

Petitioner served without disciplinary incident for over a year. Petitioner's record reflects two 
separate nonjudicial punishments (NJPs) in July 1979. The first JP was for a period of 
unauthorized absence (UA) ofless than 1 hour and one failure to obey a lawful order, and the 
second NJP was for a period of UA ofapproximately 35 minutes. 

d. On 7 August 1979, Commanding Officer (CO), Shore Inte1mediate Maintenance Activity 
initiated separation proceedings against Petitioner due to an admission of homosexuality. The 
CO stated that Petitioner admitted both verbally and in writing to homosexuality and that he 
shared an apartment with another male who was being processed for homosexual tendencies. 
The CO also noted that Petitioner had experienced some health problems since his initial 
enlistment. 

e. On 24 September 1979, Petitioner acknowledged that he was being discharged from the 
avy due to misconduct and that he did not appeal the decision. Administrative remarks in 
Petitioner's record indicate that he also acknowledged that he was not eligible for reenlistment 
and that he would receive a reentry (RE) code of RE-4. 

f. Petitioner was discharged from the avy on 28 September 1979, and received a general 
characterization of service. 

g. Reference (c) sets forth the Department of the Defense's cu1Tent 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-I J ," 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. 

CO CLUSlO 

The Board considered Petitioner's request for correction to his record and took into account the 
repeal of DADT. The Board considered that Petitioner's record supports that Petitioner was 
discharged on the basis of an admission to homosexuality and that his in-service conduct did not 
reflect any aggravating factors. The Board determined that applying reference ( c) to Petitioner's 
request is appropriate given that he appears to have been separated due to his admission of 
homosexual conduct and tendencies. The Board noted that in light of reference (c) Petitioner is 
entitled to an upgrade to his service characterization from general to honorable, a change to his 
narrative separation reason to reflect "Secretarial Authority," a change to his separation 
authority, his SPD code and his RE code. 

The Board noted that reference (c) does not direct the complete removal of all documents 
relating to an individual's administrative separation due to his or her preference. The Board 
concluded that a new and updated DD Form 21 4 is warranted to eliminate the possibilities of 
invasive questions and to address the injustice created by Petitioner's original discharge 
paperwork. The Board further concluded that no other changes should be made to Petitioner's 
record, and that the information relating to Petitioner's admission as well as the administrative 
separation processing prior to the issuance ofhis DD Form 214 should remain in the record for 
historical purposes. 

Upon review and consideration ofall the evidence of record, and especially in light of references 
(b) and (c), the Board concludes that Petitioner's request warrants full relief and finds that 
Petitioner's DD Form 214 should be changed to reflect an honorable characterization of service, 
an RE code of RE-IJ, a narrative reason of "Secretarial Authority," a separation authority of 
"MILPERSMA 1910-164," and an SPD code of"JFF." 

In view of the above, the Board directs the following corrective action. 

RECOMMENDATION: 

That Petitioner's naval record be corrected to show that on 28 September 1979, he was 
discharged with an honorable characterization of service by reason of "Secretarial Authority," 
that his SPD code was "JFF," his separation authority is "MILPERSMAN 1910-164," and his 
RE code is RE-I J. It is further directed that he be issued a new Certificate of Release or 
Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214). That a copy of this report of proceedings be filed 
in Petitioner's naval record. 

That, upon request, the Department of Veterans Affairs be informed that Petitioner's application 
was received by the Board on 27 March 2017. 

4. Pursuant to Section 6(c) of the revised Procedures of the Board for Correction of a val 
Reco rds (32 Code of Federal Regulations, Section 723.6(c) 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. 

Executive Director