DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 Docket No: 4246-18 JUL 01 2019 From: Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records To: Secretary of the Navy Ref: (a) 10 U.S.C. § 1552 (b) SECDEF memo, "Supplemental Guidance to Military Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records Considering Discharge Upgrade Requests by Veterans Claiming PTSD," of 3 September 2014 (c) PDUSD memo, "Consideration of Discharge Upgrade Requests Pursuant to Supplemental Guidance to Military Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records by Veterans Claiming PTSD or TBI," of24 February 201 6 (d) PDUSD memo, "Clarifying Guidance to Military Discharge Review Boards and Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records Considering Requests by Veterans for Modification of their Discharge Due to Mental Health Conditions, Sexual Assault, or Sexual Harassment," of 25 August 2017 (e) USD memo, "Guidance to Military Discharge Review Boards and Boards for Co1Tection of Military/Naval Records Regarding Equity, Injustice, or Clemency Determinations," of 25 July 2018 Encl: (1) DD Form 149 (NR2018004247) (2) DD Form 149 (NR20130006588) (3) Advisory Opinion of 23 Nov 18 1. Pursuant to the provisions of reference (a), Petitioner, a former enlisted member of the Marine Corps, requests that his other than honorable (0TH) characterization of service be upgraded due to his post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as evidenced by his post-service treatment record. 2. The Board, consisting of , reviewed Petitioner's that the partial corrective action indicated below should be taken on the available evidence of record. Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of enclosure (1), relevant portions of Petitioner's naval service records, court filings made by Petitioner regarding his requests for relief from the Depa1tment of the Navy, and applicable statutes, regulations, and policies, as well as the 23 November 2018 advisory opinion (AO) furnished by a qualified Navy mental health professional. 3. The Board, having reviewed all the facts of record pe1taining 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 regulation within the Department of the Navy. b. Petitioner enlisted in the Marine Corps and began a period of active duty service on 8 August 1966. During this first period of enlistment, Petitioner participated in combat operations in from January 1967 to February 1968. Petitioner completed his enlistment obligation on 23 October 1968, and received an honorable characterization of service. Petitioner immediately reenlisted in the Marine Corps. Petitioner contends he was informed that if he reenlisted he would not be sent back to . Shortly after his reenlistment, he received orders to . c. Petitioner subsequently began a series of unauthorized absences. Between 14 November 1968 and 25 April 1969, Petitioner received three separate nonjudicial punishments (NJPs) for periods of UA. On 25 April 1969, Petitioner submitted a written statement admitting to wrongfully using marijuana in . On 28 April 1969, Petitioner was notified of administrative separation proceedings and waived his right to appear before an administrative separation board. d. On 9 May 1969, Petitioner's commanding officer recommended that he be discharged with an undesirable discharge by reason of misconduct due to drug abuse. e. Petitioner requests an upgrade to his service characterization, and provides a post-service psychological evaluation that concludes he meets the criteria for PTSD. f. As part of the Board's review, a Navy licensed clinical psychologist reviewed Petitioner's available records and his contentions, and opined that there is evidence to support his contention that his misconduct can be attributed to service-incurred PTSD. CONCLUSION: The Board, in its review of Petitioner' s entire record and application, carefully weighed all potentially mitigating factors, including Petitioner's PTSD diagnosis, the conclusions of the AO, and the information reflected in both Petitioner's application for correction and his service record. The Board determined that Petitioner's misconduct is mitigated by service-connected PTSD and found that his application should receive liberal consideration. The Board concurred with the conclusions of the AO, and took particular note of Petitioner's post-service diagnosis, as well as the circumstances surrounding his re-enlistment and subsequent receipt of orders back to . The Board found that Petitioner's misconduct was mitigated by his PTSD. Accordingly, the Board determined that Petitioner is entitled to relief with respect to an upgrade to his characterization of service from other than honorable 0TH to honorable for his second enlistment, and that he should receive a change to his narrative reason for separation, with associated change to his SPD code and separation authority. In view of the above, the Board directs the following corrective action. RECOMMENDATION: That Petitioner be issued a new DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, to show he was discharged with an honorable characterization of service, that his narrative reason for separation is "Secretarial Authority," that his SPD code is "JFF," and that his separation authority is "MARCORSEPMAN PAR 6421." 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 8 May 2018. 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 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 ofreference (a), has been approved by the Board on behalf of the Secretary of the Navy. Executive Director