Other mistake: I was so bugged by protocol errors in early episodes that I stopped watching. For example, there were at least 2 episodes where Navy or Marine officers in utility uniforms were wearing Army brass on their collars. In one episode, "Harm" is walking with his female partner through a garage. He returns the salute of an enlisted man who walks by, but she doesn't. In any event, the garage was indoors, where Naval Service protocol says you don't salute.
Continuity mistake: Just before Kate asks Rabb if he was a pilot she starts to take a drink from her cup. The shot changes she starts to take a drink again. (00:38:30)
Continuity mistake: When Rabb & Kate arrive on the Seahawk, they are not wearing the proper life-vests, etc.
Continuity mistake: Throughout the episode, Harm is referred to as "Lieutenant Commander", and wears the respective insignia. But he's still a lieutenant at this point; he isn't promoted for another three episodes. This occurred due to several season 1 episodes being aired in the wrong order, with the DVDs going by the same broadcast order.
Continuity mistake: In season 1, episode 10, Harm is a Lt. Commander. In episode 11, he is back to Lieutenant.
Continuity mistake: When Captain Boone descends to engage the Hind, they are in forested mountains. It then cuts to the Hind, and there are no trees, then after the tomcat crew punch out, the RIO is hanging in the trees. The scenes that showed the Hind were cut from the movie Red Dawn.
Other mistake: After the first meeting with the JAG team and Secretary Blair to negotiate The Return of the F-14, Captain Fuente refers to Meg as "lieutenant commander". Harm is the LCDR; Meg is a lieutenant, junior grade. It's not just a character mistake: Meg's shoulder insignias indicate her rank. (00:24:30)
High Ground - S1-E16
Audio problem: When Meg is preparing to join the Marines to search for Harm and Gunny Crockett, Col. Gordon warns her to cover her back. His mouth is very obviously saying "cover [your] ass."
Continuity mistake: The death of the astronaut occurring while practicing the escape in the bucket would never happen in real life. That is because when NASA conducts them in real life before a shuttle launch, the crew practices everything up to entering the bucket. NASA does not want to run the risk of their astronauts being injured during a simple practice.
Factual error: NASA's Vehicle Assembly Building is located at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida - not Vandenberg AFB, CA.
Continuity mistake: The hull number on the ballcaps of the sailors on the USS Daniel Boone doesn't match the hull number of the ship used to portray it. The hull number on the caps, DDG-72, is currently assigned to the Arleigh Burke-class Destroyer, USS Mahan.
Answer: Officially, the individual has been ordered to attend, failing to could be interpreted as either, Failure to follow orders, dereliction of duty, going AWOL, or even desertion. It would depend on the underlying reason as to why the person doesn't appear.