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

Docket No: 2770-19  
Ref:  Signature Date  

From: Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records  
To:   Secretary of the Navy  

Ref: (a) 10 U.S.C. § 1552  
     (b) 10 U.S.C. 654 (Repeal) 
     (c) UNSECDEF memo, “Correction of Military Record following Repeal of U.S.C. 654,” of 20 September 2011 

Encl: (1) DD Form 149 with 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 a change to her discharge characterization, and the 
corresponding removal of all related references to homosexuality on Petitioner’s Certificate of 
Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214), to reflect current military directives and policy. 

2. The Board, consisting of      , reviewed Petitioner’s allegations of error and injustice on 8 July 2020, 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 enlisted in the Navy and began a period of active duty on 27 December 1979.  On 13 August 1981, she was notified that she was being administratively discharged due to unfitness due to an admission of homosexual acts. On 21 August 1981, her commanding officer recommended that she be discharged with an honorable characterization of service. On 14 September 1981, the discharge authority directed that Petitioner be discharged with the characterization of service warranted by her service record.  Petitioner was discharged on 16 October 1981, with a general (under honorable conditions) characterization of service. 

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 normally grant requests to change the characterization of service to “honorable” or “general (under honorable conditions),” 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. 

CONCLUSION: 

Upon review and consideration of all the evidence of record, and in light of references (b) and (c), theBoard concludes that Petitioner’s request warrants relief.  The Board noted Petitioner’s record supports that she was administratively discharged due to her homosexuality.  The Board noted the Petitioner’s overall record of military service and current Department of the Navy policy as established in reference (c), and concluded that relief in the form of changing her characterization of service, narrative reason for separation, separation authority, and separation code is proper at this time. 

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

RECOMMENDATION: 

That Petitioner be issued a new DD Form 214 indicating her characterization of service is “honorable,” narrative reason for separation is “Secretarial Authority,” the separation authority is “MILPERSMAN 1910-164,” and the separation code is “JFF.”
 
That Petitioner be issued an honorable discharge certificate. 

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 4 March 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.