The secretary of the Navy outlined several policy updates in response to a request for a public investigation into the death of Petty Officer Angelina Resendiz.
In May, U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, a Democrat who represents Resendiz’s Texas hometown, asked the Navy for a comprehensive investigation into the ways that its culture, policies and the chain of command’s response contributed to the sailor’s death.
On Monday, acting Navy secretary Hung Cao said the service had initiated a “comprehensive review of the response” to Resendiz’s death.
“While the review found that proper procedures were followed, several personnel policies and processes were identified as requiring further review and improvement,” Cao said.
Included in those updates is a change to the transfer regulations for sailors accused of certain sex crimes and stalking. However, the updated regulations would not have prevented the transfer of Resendiz’s killer, Jermiah Copeland, to her ship.
In the letter, Cao acknowledged Gonzalez’s concern that more than 24 hours after Resendiz’s disappearance, she was designated as being in an unauthorized absence status after failing to report for morning muster on May 30, 2025.
“The Navy designates Sailors UA who fail to report to work as a default, absent indications the member’s absence is involuntary,” Cao said.
But Resendiz’s family and friends have said they were concerned about her safety as soon as she disappeared in the early hours of May 29.
At Copeland’s court hearings, witnesses testified they immediately began an hourslong search effort and notified base law enforcement.
Resendiz’s mother, Esmeralda Castle, called the narrative in Cao’s letter “a lie.” She said she reached out to her daughter’s command the day she disappeared.
“Even if you want to ignore what the prosecutor said and not take those facts into account, I called you. I have a record of that call. It’s on my history of my phone,” Castle said. “This didn’t start on the 30th. They waited till the 30th to get involved.”
Cao’s letter said the Naval Criminal Investigative Service did not begin to investigate Resendiz’s disappearance as involuntary until May 31, and her ship’s leadership was notified about her involuntary absence the following day.
She wasn’t reclassified as “Duty Status — Unknown,” or DUSTWUN, until June 5.
“Navy policy is currently being revised to establish an ‘Absent — Unknown’ designation, in addition to UA and DUSTWUN, which will allow commanders to place a Sailor in a missing status, and speed notifications and delivery of support services to family members,” Cao said. “The Navy is also refining its command leadership training and education materials regarding duty status options and their requirements.”
The Navy did not immediately respond to The Virginian-Pilot and Daily Press’s request for clarification about the criteria and responsibilities for leadership under the new “Absent – Unknown” status, nor did it confirm whether Resendiz would have been classified as “Absent – Unknown” had the designation existed at the time of her disappearance.
Per Cao’s letter, the Navy is also revising its policy to require direct communication of the status of sailors’ remains with both the receiving funeral home and the person legally authorized to handle the remains, usually a next of kin.
The Navy did not immediately respond to questions about when the policy updates will take effect.
“The Navy continues to mourn the loss of CS3 Resendiz and will ensure to absorb lessons learned from this tragic incident, improve its processes, and continue to prioritize the welfare of our Sailors and Marines,” Cao said.
Gonzalez reiterated his call for an independent public investigation.
“I’m pleased the Navy finally provided a formal response to my inquiries and announced several modest changes to its investigatory process, including the establishment of new status designations for when a service member goes missing. However, our work is far from over to improve transparency and ensure there is a better justice system in place for those in our military who are victims of abuse,” Gonzalez said.
Castle said she is still pushing for more transparency.
“This is their narrative,” Castle said Friday. “The only way to get down to it is an independent investigation outside of the Navy. A committee needs to be formed and looked into this. Why? Because if you don’t, this is going to happen again.”
Emma Rose Brown, emma.brown@virginiamedia.com