From: Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records 

To: Secretary of the Navy 

Subj: REVIEW NAVAL RECORD OF FORMER 

Ref: 
(a) 10 U.S.C. 1552 
(b) 10 U.S.C. 654 (Repeal) 
(c) UNSECDEF Memo of 20 Sep 11 (Correction of Military Record following Repeal 
of U.S.C. 654) 
(d) OSD/DOD Name Change Provisions/Guidance 

Encl: 
(1) DD Form 149 with attachments 
(2) Case summary 
(3) Subject's naval record 

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 her re-entry/reenlistment code to 
reflect current military directives and policy. Implicit within this request is that changes also be made consistent with reference (c) to Petitioner’s narrative reason for separation, separation 
code, and separation authority, as indicated on Petitioner’s Certificate of Release or Discharge 
from Active Duty (DD Form 214). Petitioner also requests that her DD Form 214 reflect her 
current last name. 

2. The Board, consisting of reviewed Petitioner's     allegations of error and injustice on 22 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 the enclosures, together with all material submitted in support thereof, relevant portions of Petitioner’s naval record, 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 of justice to 
waive the statute of limitations and review the application on its merits. 

c. Petitioner began a period of active duty on 11 August 1992. On 24 August 1999, the 
Petitioner was notified of administrative separation proceedings by reason of homosexual 
conduct for engaging in, attempting to engage in, or soliciting another to engage in homosexual 
acts. The Petitioner exercised her right to consult with counsel but waiver her right to an 
administrative separation board. On 1 October 1999, the Petitioner was discharged with an 
honorable characterization of service with “Homosexual Conduct Acts” as the narrative reason 
for her separation, and she was assigned an “RE-4” re-entry/reenlistment code. 

d. References (b) and (c) set 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 10 U.S.C. 654. It provides service Discharge Review Boards with the guidance to grant 
requests to change the characterization of service to “honorable,” narrative reason for discharge to “secretarial authority,” separation 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. 

e. Based on the guidance reflected in reference (d) from the Office of the Secretary of 
Defense (OSD) and Department of Defense (DOD), former military personnel who have legally 
changed their name and sex, may have their DD Form 214 changed to accurately reflect their 
present name and sex/gender. In this regard, the change may allow them to obtain various 
benefits, services, employment, etc., without being subject to otherwise invasive questions. 
However, the provisions/guidance only apply to the service-member’s DD Form 214, and as such, 
no further changes will be made to the record, including changing gender identifiers. 

CONCLUSION: 

Upon review and consideration of all the evidence of record, and especially in light of references 
(b), (c), and (d), the Board concludes that Petitioner’s request warrants relief. The Board noted 
Petitioner’s record supports that she was administratively discharged due to her homosexuality 
based on DADT, and that there were absolutely no aggravating factors surrounding her 
discharge. In this regard, the Board notes the Petitioner’s overall record of military service and 
current Department of the Navy policy as established in reference (c), and concludes that relief in the form of changing her re-entry/reenlistment code is proper at this time. 

The Board also determined that in order to fully implement the letter and spirit of the reference 
(c) policy, additional relief was warranted above and beyond what Petitioner requested in her 
application. Such additional relief is necessary to ensure that there are no administrative 
inconsistencies surrounding the Petitioner’s discharge. Accordingly, in addition to modifying 
Petitioner’s re-entry/reenlistment code, the Board concluded that changing Petitioner’s narrative 
reason for separation, separation code, and separation authority on her DD-214 is warranted as 
well. 

The Board noted Petitioner has provided sufficient legal evidence (specifically, the “Order for 
Change of Name” from the dated 8 August 2012) supporting her name change request. The Board found the legal actions taken by civilian authorities to change Petitioner’s name, along with the provisions/guidance of reference (d), support a change to her DD Form 214 to reflect Petitioner’s legal name. 

RECOMMENDATION: 

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

That Petitioner be issued a new DD Form 214 to show that her character of service is 
“honorable,” narrative reason for separation is changed to “Secretarial Authority,” separation 
authority is changed to “MILPERSMAN 1910-164,” the separation code is changed to “JFF,” 
and the re-entry/reenlistment code is changed to “RE-1J.” 

Petitioner's naval record, specifically, Block 1 of the DD Form 214, be corrected to reflect the 
name “ 

That no further changes be made to the record. 

That a copy of this report of proceedings be filed in Petitioner’s naval record, along with the 
previously issued DD Form 214 which reflects the name “,” and the 
updated DD Form 214 which reflects the name “.” 

That, upon request, the Department of Veterans Affairs be informed that Petitioner's application 
was received by the Board on 15 January 2019. 

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 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.