PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:           13 February 2003
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2002078563

	I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in the case of the above-named individual.  

	Mr. Carl W. S. Chun		Director	
	Mr. Hubert S. Shaw, Jr.		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Raymond V. O'Connor, Jr.		Chairperson	
	Ms. Gail J. Wire		Member	
	Mr. Robert J. Osborn		Member	

	The applicant and counsel if any, did not appear before the Board.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

	Exhibit A - Application for correction of military 
                records
	Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including
	            advisory opinion, if any)

FINDINGS:

1.  The applicant has exhausted or the Board has waived the requirement for exhaustion of all administrative remedies afforded by existing law or regulations.

2.  The applicant requests award of the Purple Heart.

3.  The applicant states that he "froze [his] feet in the Battle of the Bulge (TRENCH FEET)."  He further states that on 24 January 1945 he was taken to a hospital in Paris, then to a hospital in England, and was later reclassified and assigned to the 533rd Ordnance Heavy Maintenance Company.  In support of his request, the applicant submitted a 19 July 1946 rating decision letter from the Veterans Administration in regard to his claim for disability pension based on trench foot, a copy of his WD AGO Form 100 (Separation Qualification Record), and a copy of his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation-Honorable Discharge).

4.  The primary record available to the Board was the applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55.  This document shows that the applicant was inducted on 1 April 1944.  He served in the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater of Operations from 1 October 1944 through 20 May 1946.  He was honorably separated from active duty on 2 June 1946.

5.  Item 33 (Decorations and Citations) of the applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55 does not show the Purple Heart as an authorized award.  Item 34 (Wounds Received in Action) contains the entry, "NONE."

6.  The applicant provided a rating decision by the Veterans Administration, dated 19 July 1946, which states in part:

	"Service connection is established for condition of your feet due to trench foot but the requirements for the minimum 10% rating are not met."

7.  The Board noted that the applicant was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge based on the entry in item 31 (Military Qualifications and Date).  However, there is no evidence the applicant received the the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained as a result of hostile action.  Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

9.  While award of the Purple Heart for frostbite injuries is currently prohibited, such injuries were previously a basis for the award.  Until 23 August 1951, Army Regulation 600-45, which governed the award of Army decorations, stated that for the purpose of considering an award of the Purple Heart, a “wound” is defined as an injury to any part of the body from an outside force, element, or agent sustained while in action in the face of the armed enemy or as a result of a hostile act of such enemy.  An “element” pertains to weather and the award of this decoration to personnel who were severely frostbitten while actually engaged in combat is authorized.

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 also provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze Star Medal is awarded for heroism and for meritorious achievement or service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The Bronze Star Medal is authorized for each individual who was cited in orders or awarded a certificate for exemplary conduct in ground combat between 7 December 1941 and 2 September 1945 or whose achievement or service, during that period, was confirmed by documents executed prior to 1 July 1947.  An award of the Combat Infantryman Badge or the Combat Medical Badge is considered to be a citation in orders.  This means, in effect, that the Bronze Star Medal is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized either badge for service during World War II.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55 does not show award of the Purple Heart or wounds sustained as a result of hostile action.

2.  There is no evidence the applicant was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action or treated for wounds or injuries resulting from hostile action.  There is no evidence of record which shows that the applicant was severely frostbitten while actually engaged in combat.

3.  Evidence submitted by the applicant shows that he filed a disability compensation claim for "trench foot" with the Veterans Administration shortly after his separation from active duty.  The Veterans Administration determined that this condition was service connected, but that it did not meet the minimum requirements for a 10% rating.

4.  In view of the foregoing, there is insufficient evidence upon which to base award of the Purple Heart in this case.

5.  The applicant was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge during World War II; therefore, he is entitled to award of the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge.  As a result the applicant's records should be corrected to show award of the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge.

6.  In view of the foregoing findings and conclusions, it would be appropriate to correct the applicant’s records, but only as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:

1.  That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by showing the individual concerned was awarded the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge.

2.  That so much of the application as is in excess of the foregoing be denied.

BOARD VOTE:  

__RJO__  __GJW__  __RVO___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		Mr. Raymond V. O'Connor, Jr._
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2002078563	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20030213	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR . . . . .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT	
REVIEW AUTHORITY	MR SCHNEIDER	
ISSUES         1.	107.0014.0000	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.