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

Docket No: 6877-18 

Ref: Signature Date 

 

From: Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records 

To: Secretary of the Navy 

Subj: REVIEW NAVAL RECORD OF 

Ref: 
(a) 10 U.S.C. § 1552 
(b) 10 U.S.C. § 654 (repealed) 
(c) USD memo of 20 Sep 11, “Repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’” 

Encl: 
(1) DD Form 149 w/ attachments 
(2) Subject's naval record (excerpts) 

1. Pursuant to the provisions of reference (a), Petitioner, a former enlisted member of the Navy, 
filed enclosure (1) with this Board requesting, in effect, that his narrative reason for separation 
“homosexuality” be changed per reference (c). He also impliedly requested that his separation 
program designator (SPD) “GRB,” and “RE-4” (not recommended for retention) reenlistment 
code be changed per reference (c). Additionally, that the separation authority “MILPERSMAN 
3630400,” be changed. 

2. The Board, consisting of reviewed Petitioner's     allegations of error and injustice on 13 August 2019 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 enclosure (1), together with all 
material submitted in support thereof, relevant portions of Petitioner’s naval record 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 found 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 
waive the statute of limitations and review the application on its merits. 

 c. Petitioner enlisted in the Navy on 9 February 1987. Petitioner received counseling on not 
being eligible for reenlistment due to admitting he was a homosexual. On 7 October 1988, he 
was discharged. Petitioner’s record contains no evidence of any misconduct related to his 
homosexual admission. The Board relied on a presumption of regularity to support the official 
actions of public officers and, in the absence of substantial evidence to rebut the presumption, to 
include evidence submitted by the Petitioner, the Board presumed that the Petitioner was 
properly discharged from the Navy. 

 d. Reference (c) sets forth the Department of the Navy's current policies, standards, and 
procedures for correction of military records following the “don’t ask, don’t tell” (DADT) repeal 
of reference (b). It provides service discharge review boards with the guidance to grant requests to 
change the characterization of service to “honorable,” narrative reason for separation to 
“secretarial authority,” SPD code to “JFF,” and reentry 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), the Board concluded that Petitioner’s request warrants relief. In this regard, the 
Board noted Petitioner’s overall record of military service and current Department of the Navy 
policy, as established in reference (b) and (c), and determined that relief in the form of a change 
to his narrative reason for separation to “secretarial authority,” SPD code to “JFF,” and 
reenlistment code to “RE-1J” was warranted. Additionally, Petitioner’s separation authority 
should be changed to read “MILPERSMAN 1910-164.” 

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

RECOMMENDATION: 

That Petitioner’s naval record be corrected to show that on 7 October 1988, his narrative reason 
for separation was “secretarial authority,” SPD code was “JFF,” reenlistment code was “RE-1J,” 
and his separation authority was “MILPERSMAN 1910-164.” 

That Petitioner 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 1 August 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 of reference (a), has been approved by the Board on 
behalf of the Secretary of the Navy.