DEX 7

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withhold a privilege, however temporary, rests at the level of 

authority empowered to grant that privilege. 

 b. Deprivation of liberty. Except as specifically 

authorized by the UCMJ and implemented through NJP or courtmartial proceedings, deprivation of normal liberty as a 

punishment is unlawful. Nevertheless, commanders may lawfully 

restrict normal liberty for nonpunitive purposes such as 

pretrial restraint, liberty-risk programs for the protection of 

foreign relations, or when Service members are required to 

perform duties outside of normal working hours to accomplish 

essential tasks or work necessary to maintain operational 

readiness. 

0105 Nonpunitive Censure, Letter of Instruction, and 

Nonpunitive Letter of Caution 

 a. General

command. Censure may be punitive or nonpunitive. See JAGMAN, 

0114 regarding punitive censure. Proper use of an adverse 

matter that is not censure is governed by Department of the Navy 

(DON) regulations and applicable service directives, such as the 

Naval Military Personnel Manual, the Marine Corps Separations 

and Retirement Manual, and the Marine Corps Individual Records 

Administration Manual. 

 b. Nonpunitive censure or letter of instruction (LOI). 

Nonpunitive Censure is provided for in R.C.M. 306(c)(2). Any 

Nonpunitive Censure, which may be delivered orally or in 

writing, or an LOI. A sample LOI is located at JAGMAN, A-1-b.

 (1) An LOI is not punishment. Rather, the letter 

conveys necessary information to remedy a deficiency in conduct 

or in the performance of duty. The contents of an LOI may 

include, but are not limited to, the following: identification 

of conduct or performance of duty deficiencies, direction for 

improvement, language of admonishment, identification of sources 

of assistance, outline of corrective action, and the 

consequences of failing to correct the deficiencies. 

 (2) An LOI should not be included in an official record 

unless it is an enclosure to a subsequent personnel action 

package. The issuance of the LOI and the underlying 

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justification, however, may be referenced as an adverse matter 

in a fitness report or evaluation. 

 c. Nonpunitive letter of caution (NPLOC). A NPLOC is a 

personal matter between the Service member and the superior 

issuing the NPLOC. A sample NPLOC is located at JAGMAN, A1a.

 (1) Only the recipient may cause the letter to be 

documents and correspondence, with the exception of those 

instances described in JAGMAN, 0105c(2) below. The facts 

underlying a NPLOC may be used to support a detachment for cause 

proceeding, for relief of command, or to support a negative 

endorsement. Similarly, service-record entries, fitness 

reports, performance evaluations, or any other official records 

or documents cannot refer to the NPLOC, though they may refer to 

the facts or circumstances underlying or relating to the NPLOC. 

 (2) If the Service member submits a rebuttal to those 

facts alleging inadequate counseling or a failure to warn of 

deficiencies, a copy of the NPLOC may be included in the 

such circumstances, a NPLOC may properly be included in the 

official service record of the Service member upon filing of the 

complete correspondence under the provisions of applicable 

service regulations.

 d. Release to the public. The DON has an obligation to 

ensure senior officials properly discharge the duties and 

responsibilities of government service. Public disclosure of 

significant departures by senior officials from expected 

standards of performance and conduct and the DON holding them 

accountable for such behavior instills public confidence in the 

institution and is consistent with principles of open 

governance. Proven wrongdoing of a serious and intentional 

nature by a senior official is of sufficient public interest to 

outweigh the privacy interest of the official. Less serious 

misconduct by lower-level agency employees generally is not 

considered of sufficient public interest to outweigh the privacy 

interest of the employee. 

 (1) In general, the DON finds the public interest 

warrants disclosure of accountability action taken in cases of 

misconduct involving flag and general officers and senior 

executive service person

confidence and trust in the integrity of the Department, the 

Navy, and the Marine Corps. Similarly, resolution of misconduct 

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involving commanding officers, executive officers, officers in

charge, senior enlisted advisors, and other personnel of lower 

rank or grade may also warrant release of information depending 

on their official position and the nature of the misconduct. 

 (2) The determination to identify an individual with 

specific wrongdoing meriting the more extensive release of 

information to the public must be made on a case-by-case basis 

by a flag or general officer in the chain of command upon 

balancing the public interest against the privacy interest of 

the individual. 

 (3) Accordingly, in appropriate cases the fact of the 

issuance of the nonpunitive letter may be disclosed to the 

public. Generally, the actual letter may not be disclosed 

without the consent of the individual receiving the nonpunitive 

letter or when required by the Freedom of Information Act 

(FOIA). The facts and circumstances underlying the letter may 

be disclosed. Similarly, the fact that counseling occurred may 

also be disclosed. Commanders considering public disclosure 

related to senior official misconduct should consult the staff 

judge advocate and the public affairs officer or strategic 

communication and operations officer in their chain of command. 

0106 Authority to Impose 

 a. Commander. As used in this section, the terms commander 

and commanding officer mean: 

 (1) A commissioned or warrant officer who, by virtue of 

rank and assignment, exercises primary command authority over a 

military organization or prescribed territorial area, which under 

 (2) An officer empowered to convene general or special 

courts-martial; 

 (3) A commander of a joint command; 

 (4) An officer designated pursuant to U.S. Navy 

Regulation 0722; or 

 (5) An officer designated as a commander of a separate or 

detached command pursuant to U.S. Navy Regulation 0723. 

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