DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 Docket No: 2598-19 7686-98 Ref: Signature Date Dear : This letter is in reference to your reconsideration request received on 5 March 2019. You previously petitioned the Board for Correction of Naval Records (Board) and were advised that your application had been disapproved. 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 the entire record, the Board found the evidence submitted was insufficient to establish the existence of probable material error or injustice. Consequently, your application has been denied. Because your application was submitted with new evidence not previously considered, the Board found it in the interest of justice to review your application. Your current request has been carefully examined by a three-member panel of the Board, sitting in executive session on 28 July 2020. The names and votes of the members of the panel will be furnished upon request. Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of your application and all material submitted in support of your application. In addition, the Board considered the advisory opinion (AO) furnished by a qualified mental health professional, dated 16 April 2020, which was previously provided to you. You presented as new evidence, clinical record entries listing a diagnoses of an Adjustment Disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood, severe Alcohol Use Disorder, and an Unspecified Personality Disorder. Additionally, you submitted information that you were diagnosed with a mental health condition in 2018, thirty-eight years after your discharge from the military. After careful and conscientious consideration of the entire record, the Board determined that your statement and evidence you provided, even though not previously considered by the Board, was insufficient to establish the existence of probable material error or injustice and thus not material. 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 mental health professional further reviewed your request for correction to your record and provided the Board with an AO. The mental health professional reviewed your contentions in conjunction with your medical information provided in order to evaluate your assertion that you were suffering from a mental health condition. The AO noted that there was no history or explanation of your mental health diagnoses, and you did not provide additional clinical records or evidence related to your petition. Additionally, there were no clinical records presented from your in-service time, or post-discharge interval indicating a mental health condition during your military service. Therefore, based on the available evidence, there is insufficient evidence of a mental health condition attributable to your military service that may have mitigated your misconduct. The AO further advised that additional information, such as medical records explaining any diagnosis of a mental health condition associated with your military service and linked to your military misconduct is required to potentially render an alternate opinion. 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,