Adrift (1) - S6-E24
Continuity mistake: The USS Patrick Henry in "JAG" has always used the hull number "74" on the sailors' ballcaps, as well as the scenes of the ship. (CVN-74 in real-life is the USS John C. Stennis). However, in the scene just before the pilots' briefing, the stock footage of the carrier was of a different vessel, hull number 59. In real-life, "59" was the USS Forrestal (CVA-59), the ship that had one of the deadliest shipboard fire on July 29, 1967. The fire killed 132 crewmen, injured 62, with 2 missing & presumed dead. The fire raged for several hours & would have destroyed the carrier, if not for the actions of the heroic crewmen to save her.
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.