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

Docket No: 522-19 Ref: Signature Date 
From: Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records 
To: Secretary of the Navy 
Subj: REVIEW OF NAVAL RECORD OF FORMER 

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      (b) 10 U.S.C. § 654 (repealed) 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

Encl:  (1) DD Form 149  

1.  Pursuant to the provisions of reference (a), Petitioner, a former enlisted Sailor, filed the enclosure with the Board for Correction of Naval Records (Board), requesting an upgrade of his discharge to honorable. 

2.  The Board, consisting of reviewed Petitioner’s allegations of error and injustice on 6 January 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 enclosure, relevant portions of the Petitioner’s naval records, as well as 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.  Petitioner enlisted in the Navy and began a period of active duty on 27 May 1955. 

c.  On 26 April 1956, he admitted to two in-service homosexual acts.  On 1 May 1956, Petitioner requested a good of the service separation in lieu of trial by court-martial (GOS/SILT).  On 15 May 1956, an administrative discharge board (ADB) recommended Petitioner receive an undesirable discharge by reason of unfitness.  
    On 16 August 1956, Petitioner was discharged with an undesirable characterization of service. 

d. On 7 June 1979, Petitioner was informed of the Naval Discharge Review Board decision that his discharge should be changed to Honorable/Unfit because committing homosexual acts 
displayed unfitness for further service, however, his service record contained no courts-martial or NJPs, and had an average conduct mark of 4.0, warranting an honorable discharge. 

e.  Petitioner acknowledges he made a mistake, and although he told the truth about his mistake, he was discharged from the Navy.  He stated he shamed himself and his family.  He is 80 years old and would like the American flag on his casket when he dies. 

f.  Reference (c) sets forth the Department of Defense’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 guidance to grant requests to change the narrative reason for discharge to “secretarial authority,” SPD code to “JFF,” re-characterize the discharge to honorable, and reenlistment code to “RE-1J,” when the original discharge was based solely on DADT or a similar policy in place prior to enactment, and there are no aggravating factors in the record, such as misconduct. 

CONCLUSION 

Upon review and consideration of all the evidence of record, especially in light of references (b) and (c), the Board concluded that Petitioner’s request warrants favorable action.  The Board found that Petitioner’s record supports his contention that he was separated due to his sexual preference, and his performance and conduct warranted a fully honorable characterization of service. 

RECOMMENDATION 

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

Petitioner’s naval record be corrected by changing the separation authority and narrative reason to “Secretarial Authority;” changing the separation code to “JFF;” and changing the RE code to “RE-1J.” 

That Petitioner be issued a new DD Form 214 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty showing the above changes. 

That no further action be granted. 

That a copy of this report of proceedings be filed in Petitioner’s naval record. 

That upon request, the Department of Veterans Affairs is informed that Petitioner’s application was received by the Board on 13 December 2018. 

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 Regulations 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 the reference, has been approved by the Board on behalf of the Secretary of the Navy.