A decorated Marine has been considered 'unfit ' to re-enlist after getting a rifle tattoo on his forearm to commemorate his previous deployment . Sgt . Daniel Knapp from Jacksonville , North Carolina , received combat medals after serving in Afghanistan , but has been denied re-enlistment due to the service 's strict policy on body ink . While the Army has recently updated its policy , the Marine Corps introduced more stringent rules in 2010 concerning the size and placement of tattoos that Knapp has fallen foul of . Despite having several tattoos while he was in the Marines , Sgt . Daniel Knapp has been denied re-enlistment after getting a tattoo on his forearm – a pair of crossed rifles and 0311 designation for Marine riflemen , right – to commemorate his previous deployment . Despite having several tattoos while he was in the Marines , it is the one he got on his forearm after he left – a pair of crossed rifles and 0311 designation for Marine riflemen – that has cost him his chance at reenlisting . 'When I was in Afghanistan , ' Knapp told Marine Corps Times , 'my tattoos never stopped me from shooting anyone , and they never made me more of a target . They never stopped me from keeping Marines safe . On patrol nothing ever happened because of my tattoos . ' Knapp is considered a Tier 1 Marine , scoring in the top 10 percent in fitness , marksmanship , and job performance . Despite serving two deployments , earning promotions , a valor award and a waiver endorsed by his command , Knapp has been denied re-enlistment by Marine Corps headquarters . So while members of his unit - Camp Lejeune 's 2nd Battalion , 8th Marines – are being deployed to Europe as part of a crisis-response force , he is being left behind . Knapp 's predicament highlights a generational disconnect on attitudes towards ink and what marines say is the need for lax regulations that reflect changing societal perceptions of tattoos , writes the Marine Corps Times . Despite serving two deployments , earning promotions , a valor award and a waiver endorsed by his command , Knapp has been denied re-enlistment by Marine Corps headquarters . Otherwise-good marines , such as Knapp , are being lost because of a widespread lack of understanding among the rank-and-file of the organization 's lengthy tattoo regulations . Senior officials maintain that tattoos detract from the military bearing and threaten the ability of troops to find work in the civilian sector after their time in the military ends . While the Marine Corps has maintained strict rules , Army officials have become more accepting . U.S. Army Chief of Staff Ray Odierno stated earlier this month that while offensive tattoos are still forbidden , other restrictions as to the size , shape and location of the ink have been removed . 'Society is changing its view of tattoos , ' Odierno said , 'and we have to change along with that . It makes sense . 'My tattoos never stopped me from shooting anyone ' : Knapp is now considering joining the Army which has less stringent rules about body ink . 'Soldiers have grown up in an era when tattoos are much more acceptable and we have to change along with that . ' Commandant General Joseph Dunford , the sergeant major of the Marine Corps , announced a review if policy earlier this year . On April 16 , a spokesman stated that the review was complete , but the outcome has not yet been announced .
Despite having several tattoos while in the Marines , Sgt . Johnson was not allowed to have any on his body because of a policy that said no one could be tattooed.