DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 Docket No: 8327-18 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 the entire record, 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. A three-member panel of the Board, sitting in executive session, considered your application on 16 December 2019. 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. In addition, the Board considered the advisory opinion (AO) furnished by a qualified Navy mental health professional dated 19 July 2019, which was previously provided to you and to which you did not respond. You enlisted in the Navy and began a period of active duty on 15 January 1976. On 27 April 1978, you were convicted by special court-martial (SPCM) of 175 days of unauthorized absence (UA). You were sentenced to a period of confinement at hard labor. On 18 June 1981, you were convicted by a second SPCM of 429 days of UA. You were sentenced to a period of confinement at hard labor, a reduction in paygrade, and a bad conduct discharge (BCD). You received your BCD on 16 August 1982. You request an upgrade of your characterization of service on the basis that you suffered from a mental health condition during your military service. Your request was fully and carefully considered by the Board in light of the Secretary of Defense’s 3 September 2014 memorandum, “Supplemental Guidance to Military Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records Considering Discharge Upgrade Requested by Veterans Claiming Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,” the 25 August 2017 memorandum, “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,” and the 25 July 2018 memorandum, “Guidance to Military Discharge Review boards and Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records Regarding Equity, Injustice, or Clemency Determinations.” A qualified Navy mental health professional further reviewed your request for correction to your record and provided the Board with an AO regarding your assertion you were suffering from a mental health condition during your service. The AO noted, in part, that you denied psychiatric abnormalities in your discharge physical. You submitted a statement that you developed depression after learning that your wife had been unfaithful, which led to your UA. No other records were available for review. Your service record is somewhat consistent with your statement that you were married and your wife was abusing drugs, which resulted in depression. However, your service record indicates that you were married in February 1981, during your second UA period. Thus, it is difficult to attribute your UA to depression incurred as a result of your spouse’s infidelity. In-service, you were diagnosed with what is currently termed erectile disorder. However, there is insufficient evidence to attribute this mental health condition to military service, as you reported lifelong impotence to your military medical provider. Unfortunately, you submitted no medical information that you have another mental health diagnosis. Additional records, such as post-service medical records describing your mental health diagnosis and the specific link between your symptoms and misconduct are required to render an alternate opinion. Based on the available evidence, it was opined that there is insufficient evidence to attribute your misconduct to a mental health condition incurred during military service. The Board carefully weighed all potentially mitigating factors, such as your record of service, desire to upgrade your discharge, you were 19 years old when you went UA, had prior years of good service, and had problems with your marriage that made you very depressed and led to your UA. The Board also considered your assertion that your counsel did not give you the best representation, as you should not have plead guilty, and you would have served some brig time and have been allowed to complete your enlistment. The Board concluded these factors were not sufficient to warrant recharacterization of your discharge given your two SPCM conviction for lengthy periods of UA. With regard to your assertion, the Board has no authority to consider claims of legal error at a court-martial, and must restraint its review to determining whether clemency is warranted on the sentence. Further, the Board concurred with the AO’s statement that there is insufficient evidence to attribute your misconduct to a mental health condition incurred during military service. 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,