Docket No:  7917-19 
Ref: Signature Date 

Dear : 
 
This is in reference to your application for correction of your naval record pursuant to Section 1552 of Title 10, United States Code.  After careful and conscientious consideration of relevant portions of your naval record and your application, the Board for Correction of Naval Records (Board) found the evidence submitted insufficient to establish the existence of probable material error or injustice.  Consequently, your application has been denied.      
  
Although you did not file your application in a timely manner, the statute of limitation was waived in accordance with the 25 August 2017 guidance from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (Kurta Memo).  A three-member panel of the Board, sitting in executive session, considered your application on 21 December 2020.  The names and votes of the panel members 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, and applicable statutes, regulations, and policies, to include the Kurta Memo, and the 25 July 2018 guidance from the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness regarding equity, injustice, or clemency determinations (Wilkie Memo).  In addition, the Board considered the advisory opinion (AO) furnished by a qualified mental health professional dated 16 November 2020, which was previously provided to you. 
  
You enlisted in the Navy and began a period of active duty on 23 November 1988.  On 13 May 1989, you received nonjudicial punishment (NJP) for being an accessory to destruction, and participating in a riot.  On 5 March 1990, medical personnel diagnosed you of having a Passive Aggressive Personality Disorder, severe.  On 7 March 1990, you were counseled concerning your need of constant supervision, not completing assigned tasks, showing signs of depression, mood swings, outburst of anger, and anxiety.  You were retained on active duty and warned that any further deficiencies in your performance and/or conduct could result in administrative discharge action.  On 30 August 1990, you received NJP for dereliction of duty, 32 days of unauthorized absence, and two specifications of missing ship’s movement.  On 27 September 1990, administrative discharge action was initiated to separate you from the Navy by reason of misconduct due to commission of a serious offense and a pattern of misconduct.  After being afforded your procedural rights, you elected to waive your right to have your case heard before an administrative discharge board.  On 30 October 1990, your case was forwarded to the separation authority (SA) with a recommendation that you receive an other than honorable (OTH) discharge.  On 31 October 1990, the SA approved the recommendation, and directed that you receive an OTH discharge.  On 6 November 1990, you were discharged from the Navy with an OTH characterization of service. 
  
As part of the Board’s review, a qualified mental health professional reviewed your request for correction to your record and provided the Board with an AO regarding your assertion that you were suffering from a mental health condition during your service.  The AO noted, that based on the available objective evidence, there is insufficient evidence of a mental health condition at the time of your enlistment attributable to your military service that may have mitigated your misconduct. 
 
The Board carefully considered all potentially mitigating factors to determine whether the interests of justice warrant relief in your case in accordance with the Wilkie Memo.  These included, but were not limited to, your desire to upgrade your discharge, your in-service diagnosed medical condition, your assertion that you are a Navy veteran, husband, and a father of four trying to make a better life for you and your family, and you are on the verge of being homeless.  The Board also considered your assertions that during your time on active duty, you were suffering from chronic depression due to family hardships, your father’s alcoholism, and domestic violence towards your mother and siblings.  Based upon this review, the Board concluded these potentially mitigating factors were insufficient to warrant relief.  Specifically, the Board determined that your repeated misconduct, as evidenced by your two NJPs, and the fact that you were counseled and warned of the consequences of further misconduct, outweighed these mitigating factors.  Accordingly, given the totality of the circumstances, the Board determined that your request does not merit relief.   
  
You are entitled to have the Board reconsider its decision upon 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.   
 
                                                                              
Sincerely,