Bilecki Presents USS Port Royal Sailor’s Service at Separation Board; General Discharge

Bilecki Presents USS Port Royal Sailor’s Service at Separation Board; General Discharge

December 2021

Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii

USS PORT ROYAL

Navy Petty Officer First Class – E-6, formerly serving as Chief

Allegations: UCMJ Article 92 Failure to Obey a Lawful Order or Regulation; UCMJ Article 134 Fraternization; Administrative Separation Following Summary Court-Martial

Facts

A female Petty Officer First Class who had served as Chief and was assigned to USS PORT ROYAL was accused of having a sexual relationship with a junior male Sailor onboard the ship. Another Sailor reported the relationship. The command had video showing the Chief and the junior Sailor having sex. When command questioned her, she did not know the video existed. She denied the sexual relationship, denied fraternization, and denied an improper relationship. Command later confronted her with the video.

There was also a prior fraternization NJP from years earlier on another ship. That made the administrative separation board much harder. This was not a first-time lapse viewed in isolation. The Navy had the current relationship, the false denial, the video, the prior fraternization history, and the Summary Court-Martial conviction.

Bilecki was retained after the Summary Court-Martial, at the administrative separation notification phase. By then, she was a Petty Officer First Class and had been convicted under Article 92 and Article 134.

At the administrative separation board, basis was essentially conceded. The defense still fought for retention. If the board was going to separate her, the fight became characterization: General discharge or Other Than Honorable.

The defense presented the part of her Navy career that still mattered. She reported to USS PORT ROYAL in July 2019 after prior sea duty. The ship needed a Boatswain's Mate Chief, and she took over Deck Division during a hard certification cycle. She helped move the division through MOB-S, search and rescue, and aviation certification. Her Sailors qualified. Her junior officers developed. Her division produced.

She had served as Chief at a young age, served consecutive sea tours, and built her career at sea. She was a Boatswain's Mate who wanted to work, wanted to be underway, and wanted to lead Sailors. The board also had to account for the punishment already imposed at Summary Court-Martial.

The board recommended separation with a General discharge. She received that characterization, avoiding the Other Than Honorable discharge the command sought.

In a case with video evidence, a prior fraternization NJP, a false denial to command, and a Summary Court-Martial conviction, the General discharge was the result that mattered.

Result: General discharge at administrative separation board. No OTH. After Summary Court-Martial conviction.

---

FAQ

Q: Why did the administrative separation board matter after the Summary Court-Martial conviction?
Because the Summary Court-Martial had already punished the misconduct, but it did not decide the final discharge characterization. By the time Bilecki was retained, she was a Petty Officer First Class and had already been convicted and punished. The administrative separation board still had to decide whether she would be retained and, if separated, whether she would receive a General discharge or an Other Than Honorable characterization.

Q: Why was a General discharge a meaningful result in this case?
Because the Navy had serious aggravating facts: video evidence of the sexual relationship, a false denial to command, a prior fraternization NJP, a Summary Court-Martial conviction. Those facts gave the Government a strong argument for an OTH. The board recommended a General discharge, and she received that characterization.

Q: What does it mean to present the whole Sailor at a Navy administrative separation board?
It means the defense does not only argue the misconduct. The board also hears the Sailor's years of service, sea duty, operational performance, leadership history, qualifications, Sailors developed, junior officers trained, and punishment already imposed. Here, the defense presented her Deck Division leadership on USS PORT ROYAL, MOB-S, search and rescue, aviation certification, consecutive sea tours, and the fact that she had already been punished at Summary Court-Martial.