Docket No: 10285-19 
          10459-16 
Ref: Signature Date 

Dear :  
 
This letter is in reference to your reconsideration request.  You previously petitioned the Board for Correction of Naval Records (Board) and were advised that your application had been denied.  Your case was reconsidered in accordance with Board procedures that conform to Lipsman v. Sec’y of the Army, 335 F. Supp. 2d 48 (D.D.C. 2004).  After careful and conscientious consideration of relevant portions of your naval record and your application, the 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 28 September 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, and applicable statutes, regulations, and policies. 
 
You enlisted in the Marine Corps and began a period of active duty on 29 September 1978.  On 20 December 1978, you were discharged from the Marine Corp due to an erroneous enlistment, and received an honorable discharge and a reentry (RE) code of RE-3F.   
 
In your application for correction, you assert that you should never have received an erroneous enlistment for your honorable discharge.  You claim that you should have received a medical discharge.  You contend that you should have been discharged for medical issues that occurred due to an allergic reaction to Deets exposure during boot camp.  You also provide a disability rating issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in 2014. 
 
In your previous application, you also asked for a disability discharge based on the VA rating from 2104.  Consistent with the previous Board, the current Board found that there is no evidence to support a finding that you were unfit for continued naval service due to a qualifying disability at the time of your discharge.  The VA determination was again not persuasive to the Board since eligibility for compensation and pension disability ratings by the VA is tied to the establishment of service connection and is manifestation-based without a requirement that unfitness for military duty be demonstrated.  The Board also found that your contention of Deets exposure is not supported by the information in your available service record, and you did not provide evidence to substantiate your contention that you were exposed to Deets and that the exposure impacted your fitness for duty and led to your discharge from the Marine Corps.  The Board again found that your current discharge appears to have been issued without error or injustice, and corrective action is not warranted. 
 
It is regretted that the circumstances of your reconsideration petition 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 the absence of new matters for reconsideration, the decision of the Board is final, and your only recourse would be to seek relief, at no cost to the Board, from a court of appropriate jurisdiction. 
 
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,