Integrity violation--help?

[thayleeuh]

So.  I'm very confused by the situation involving my husband right now, so I'm hoping you guys can help me.

Essentially, two months ago, my husband accidentally marked the wrong work as being completed and when he realized he'd marked on the wrong space or box or whatever it is in the logs that he marks off the work from, he didn't inform anyone.  He figured he'd go back later that day and just do that work.  Well, one thing lead to another and that never happened.  Two months rolled by without the work actually getting done.  Before he could get the work done, his chief found the logs and questioned him.  His chief doesn't believe it was an accident, and he is now being sent to captain's mast for an integrity violation, because they believe he did it on purpose.

1.  If they kick him out, are they going to pay for us to go home?
2.  I know that integrity violations are big deals for nukes, so if they DON'T kick him out, will he still be a nuke?
3.  How common is it for an infraction like this to be taken THIS seriously?
4.  What kind of discharge will they give him for an integrity violation? 
4a.  If it's a less than honorable discharge, will he be able to find work?

[thenukeman]

Website here states this.   This is not a Court Martial.  Also depends on other things he has done>  good and bad. I was in the Army but had similar punishment for my soldiers. Good soldiers I tried to   help or was lenient others that had a pattern of poor performance  I got rid of.  http://navyformoms.com/forum/topics/captains-mast-or-njp

Captain's Mast is the Navy term for Non-judicial Punishment (NJP). This is used when a Sailor is in violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). This is only used when other options to correct deficiencies have been unsuccessful or when the violation is fairly egregious (some examples are under-age drinking, drinking and driving, adultery, UA (unauthorized absence), integrity violations (cheating/lying) and assault). The process is involved, has a few steps of review and your Sailor has the right to remain silent, the right to an lawyer and the right to appeal to a higher authority. However, there are no rules of evidence for NJP. The Captain will review the Sailor's entire record before the Mast. When they go to Mast they stand in front of a table in their dress uniform with their Commanding Officer (CO) sitting at the opposite end of the table. Their entire chain of command (including their advisor or Chief) will be posted along the left hand side of the CO. The Captain will ensure that they have been made aware of their rights and the charges leveled against the Sailor. The Captain will then ask the Sailor questions about the incident and then consult the chain of command about the Sailor's abilities, potential and effort. The CO will then make a decision about the Sailor and "award" him punishment. (We use the term award for both positive (medals) and negative (fines) things given by the CO as they are both earned.) The biggest benefit of NJP rather then Court Martial is that the CO is limited on the amount of punishment that he can award.

Firstly, I would like to say that at no point does the Navy give its Sailors only one chance and set them up for failure. Most Mast cases at training commands are based up several violations that the Sailor has shown no interest in correcting. As for the more sever issues that go straight to Mast that I talked about above, the Sailors are trained on those things being wrong and the consequence of there actions on countless occasions including "sea stories" from the staff about themselves or other Sailors. We realize that many of these are 18-19 year olds who still lack maturity and try our best to focus them into the Sailors that we need.

Second, Mast does not end the Sailor's career. It affects it, but the goal is that this will act like a spanking and convince the Sailor that they are doing the wrong thing. During the Restriction and Extra Duty they are constantly trained on military obligations and refocused in a boot camp like style. In addition the Sailor is given whatever aid is needed to help them with their issues (example Drinking and driving they see the command DAPA (Drug and Alcohol Program Advisor) and are referred for whatever treatment is deemed necessary for their problem with alcohol). The best thing you can do for them is encourage them to correct whatever problem caused them to go to Mast. Guide them to try and live within the rules rather then try and cheat the system without getting caught.

Finally, if your Sailor refuses to be a Sailor then chances are he or she will eventually be separated from Naval Service with some form of non-Honorable discharge. Please believe me that if this happens it is because we have exhausted all reasonable efforts to help them or they refused to help themselves (drinking and driving a second time after treatment results in ADSEP automatically). Additionally, we do NOT simply escort them off base and take away their seabag. We give them plane or bus tickets as far off as their home of record; prior to discharge we counseled them on getting a job related skills; we give them whatever treatment they need (counseling/drug or alcohol treatment) and will provide transportation to the airport or bus/train depot as needed. They are adults however and we have no right to contact you their parents if the Sailor does not choose to do so on their own. We counsel them to contact you but as everything else in life it is their choice.

I hope that I have been able to clear up any misconceptions or misunderstandings that are involved with Captain's Mast.
Very Respectfully,

[spekkio]

So.  I'm very confused by the situation involving my husband right now, so I'm hoping you guys can help me.

Essentially, two months ago, my husband accidentally marked the wrong work as being completed and when he realized he'd marked on the wrong space or box or whatever it is in the logs that he marks off the work from, he didn't inform anyone.  He figured he'd go back later that day and just do that work.  Well, one thing lead to another and that never happened.  Two months rolled by without the work actually getting done.  Before he could get the work done, his chief found the logs and questioned him.  His chief doesn't believe it was an accident, and he is now being sent to captain's mast for an integrity violation, because they believe he did it on purpose.

First, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but your husband is in trouble because he simply could have put a straight line through the log and initialed it. That is how people 'cross-out' erroneous entries in logs. I'm not sure why he decided that this wasn't an option, but that's why he's in trouble.

Now, onto your questions

1.  If they kick him out...

That usually requires a Court Martial or several Captain's Masts. EDIT: The CO can't directly kick him out at mast; instead, if the CO recommends removal of the nuclear NEC (which will be granted), then your husband can try to serve as a conventional EM/ET/MM. If the rating is full and the Navy has no other place for him, then he'll be administratively separated within 10 days.

2.  I know that integrity violations are big deals for nukes, so if they DON'T kick him out, will he still be a nuke?

Entirely up to the CO's discretion at Captain's Mast. Your husband is going to have a better explanation than what you told me, because the 'no really I totally marked this off by accident and meant to do this maintenance later' excuse smells like BS. Like I said above, he could have just crossed it out and initialled the erroneous entry. The CO also knows this.

At a minimum, he's going to lose his stripes and get docked pay. If he gets de-nuked, he will also have to repay any bonuses he's collected.

3.  How common is it for an infraction like this to be taken THIS seriously?

Very common. Your husband works on old but complex equipment that needs to be properly maintained to keep functioning. A failure in equipment due to poor maintenance could have drastic consequences when talking about nuclear power, and at a minimum would cost the Navy millions in corrective repairs.

4.  What kind of discharge will they give him for an integrity violation?  

EDIT It's not an automatic discharge as described in point 1. If there's no home for him in the Navy, he gets an administrative separation, but I'm not sure what the classification (honorable, general, OTH) for separation is for this kind of thing.

4a.  If it's a less than honorable discharge, will he be able to find work?

He won't get discharged, but an OTH would make it difficult to find work. Every employer asks if you have been honorably discharged; they don't ask if you have been dishonorably discharged.

[spekkio]

Firstly, I would like to say that at no point does the Navy give its Sailors only one chance and set them up for failure...Second, Mast does not end the Sailor's career.

Good post, but a correction here...as far as the nuclear Navy is concerned, there are a handful of offenses that will end a Sailor's career as a nuke. One of those offenses is an integrity violation. Another is getting a DUI or sexual assault charge while in the training pipeline.

The nuclear Navy very clearly articulates its standards and expectations for conduct, and for better-or-worse, does not treat its operators like little children if they decide to ignore those expectations. Moreso than any other rating, the Navy nuclear power program expects its Sailors to behave as professionals and will hold them accountable for misconduct.

[HeavyD]

They won't. Worst case is that they 'de-nuke' him and he serves as a conventional MM/EM/ET. If he's an MM sub-volunteer, "welcome to A-gang."

Not sure about the sub fleet, but as recent as 3 years ago when I retired, if a surface nuke lost their NEC, the conventional MM/EM/ET manning levels were high enough that these sailors were being separated.  To add to this potential bad news, the standard practice was that the official separation notice would come from BUPERS stating "...separate member within 10 days of receipt of this message...".

I am sorry to toss this potentially panic inducing information out there, but Spekkio hit it right on the head.  The entire Nuclear program is built upon the integrity of the sailors tasked with operating and maintaining the plants. 

I wont go so far as to accuse your husband of lying to you, but it definitely sounds like there is more to this story than he is willing to share with you.  If he is being honest, then here's a little honesty back ... he has no business being a nuke in the first place.  As Spekkio pointed out, this is a basic and fundamental issue here.  Correcting his mistake literally would take 10 seconds at the time.  There is no "going back later" and actually doing what you've already said you did.  He falsified an official legal document (logs) and now is being held accountable for it. 

What happens to him is ultimately up to his CO.  Best of luck to both of you.  Hopefully this ends up being a life lesson that he takes to heart.

[spekkio]

Not sure about the sub fleet, but as recent as 3 years ago when I retired, if a surface nuke lost their NEC, the conventional MM/EM/ET manning levels were high enough that these sailors were being separated.  To add to this potential bad news, the standard practice was that the official separation notice would come from BUPERS stating "...separate member within 10 days of receipt of this message..."

Forgot about that, thanks for the correction. Yes, if the conventional equivalent rating is full, your husband will be given a pink slip. It's formally called an 'Administrative Separation.' I'm not sure whether they would classify it as honorable, general, or OTH because his reason for separation goes back to an integrity violation.

If your husband hasn't already, he should speak to a military legal representative. The HHG office can answer any questions about whether they will move your stuff.