Docket No: 3187-19 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. 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 25 June 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, applicable statutes, regulations, and policies, and the 15 May 2020 advisory opinion (AO) from a Navy mental health provider. You enlisted in the Navy on 25 November 1996 after endorsing pre-service marijuana use. On 21 January 1998, you were counseled regarding an alcohol incident and directed to complete Level III treatment. On 24 August 1998, you received nonjudicial punishment (NJP) for two instances of unauthorized absence (UA). On 28 September 1998, you received a second NJP for wrongful use of marijuana. On 13 October 1998, you received a third NJP for three instances of being UA from restricted muster. Your record is incomplete in that it does not contain the documents pertaining to your administrative discharge but, based on your Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214), it appears that after being afforded all of your procedural rights, the separation authority directed discharge with an other than honorable (OTH) characterization of service by reason of misconduct due to drug abuse. You were discharged with an OTH characterization of service on 30 October 1998. Your request for an upgrade to your characterization of service was reviewed in consideration of your contention you suffered from severe depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during 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.” As part of the Board’s review, a Navy mental health professional reviewed your request and provided the Board with an AO on 15 May 2020. The AO noted your in-service medical records do not indicate the existence of mental health symptoms or conditions other than substance abuse nor have you submitted any evidence describing in-service trauma or mental health symptoms during military service other than substance abuse. The AO also noted you did not submit any evidence of a post-discharge mental health condition as rendered by a mental health practitioner. Further, the stressors indicated in your petition are consistent with naval service. Based on the available evidence, the AO determined there was insufficient evidence of a mental health condition attributable to your military service that may have mitigated your misconduct. The AO was provided to you on 19 May 2020, and you were given 30 days in which to submit a response. When you did not provide a response, your case was submitted to the Board for consideration. The Board carefully reviewed your application, weighed all potentially mitigating factors and considered your contention that you suffered from severe depression and PTSD while serving on active duty, and the experiences you had were directly related to your mental health conditions. The Board considered that you were homesick, were denied leave to see your sick father, and you were scared for your life working on the flight deck and overly stressed with the working conditions you endured during operations overseas in the during wartime. The Board also considered your contention that you communicated your concerns to your chain of command several times but you were never offered help which “led to my drinking and drug abuse.” The Board also considered each of the letters submitted as part of your petition for correction of your record. The Board noted the letters detail assistance and treatment provided by the command for your alcohol use and determined there was insufficient evidence to support your contention that you were not offered help. Specifically, in the undated letter to your senator, you describe meeting with the “career alcohol and drug counselor”, attending “AA meetings on the boat” which helped you. In a letter to your mom, you describe being recommended for rehab but being “real scared” and not wanting to go. You also describe in your letter to the senator having graduated treatment and relapsing. The Board, relying upon the AO, concurred that there was insufficient evidence to support a finding that a mental health condition contributed to or mitigated your misconduct. The Board did not find evidence of an error or injustice that warrants changing your characterization of 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.