RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 25 September 2007 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20070011820 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. Ms. Catherine C. Mitrano Director Mr. Dean L. Turnbull Analyst The following members, a quorum, were present: Mr. William D. Powers Chairperson Ms. LaVerne M. Douglas Member Mr. Jerome L. Pionk Member The Board considered the following evidence: Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records. Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion, if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests reconsideration for his deceased father, a former service member (FSM), to be awarded the Purple Heart. 2. The applicant states, in effect, that he disagrees with the Board's decision for several reasons, and he is presenting new arguments that he feels were not considered by the Board. He states, in effect, that the matter when the FSM was actually wounded, because and the Army's records were lost in a fire (obviously not the fault of the FSM), the Army seems to rely on the date of Chaplain O'Brien's letter as the date when the FSM was wounded. 3. He states, in effect, the evacuation between the field hospital and the 180th General Hospital and the time it took the Chaplain to write the letter and to visit the FSM had to be more than a few days. In fact, it may have occurred before the German surrendered because in the European Theater of Operation (ETO) during May 1945, it was very busy, so in any event, the wound must have been sustained within a few days of the surrender. Wars do not come to a screeching halt. He further states "The FSM's wounds were most definitely the result of hostile action, in that the dropping and detonation of bombs is an act of war. The FSM sustained a permanent disability while clearing this field, and it was directly related to an act of war." 4. The applicant provides a copy of written statement, dated 18 July 2007; a letter from his state representative, dated 26 July 2007; a letter from Chaplain O'Brien addressed to his grandmother informing her that his father was wounded, dated 4 June 1945; a DD Form 149, dated 23 March 2006; a copy of the FSM’s Department of Veterans Affairs compensation claim; a copy of the original Board's decision, dated 3 October 2006; and a copy of another applicant's Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) case. CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number AR20060004707, on 3 October 2006. 2. In the original decision the ABCMR found that although the FSM was wounded in the ETO, he was wounded after hostilities had ended and the applicant has failed to show through the evidence submitted and the evidence of record, that the injuries were the result of enemy action. Also, that the written letter from the chaplain to the FSM’s mother in June 1945, clearly states that the injury was an accident. 3. The applicant provided new arguments which require that his case be reconsidered by the ABCMR. In his new arguments, as stated above, he says the evacuation between the field hospital and the 180th General Hospital and the time it took the Chaplain to write the letter and to visit the FSM had to be more than a few days. In fact, it may have occurred before the German surrendered. In the European Theater of Operation (ETO) during May 1945, it was very busy, so in any event, the wound must have been sustained within a few days of the surrender. Wars do not come to a screeching halt. "The FSM's wounds were most definitely the result of hostile action, in that the dropping and detonation of bombs is an act of war." 4. In the letter from the chaplain to the FSM's mother, it states that the FSM's injury resulted from an accidental explosion of a bomb in a field that he and some other men were clearing. It was mistakenly thought to be merely an incendiary bomb. 5. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) 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 by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record. This same regulation further states an example of injuries or wounds which clearly do not justify award of the purple heart are accidents, to include explosive, aircraft, vehicular, and other accidental wounding not related to or caused by enemy action. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. The new arguments that the applicant submitted essentially challenges the date the FSM was accidentally wounded by an explosion from a bomb, and argues that the explosion was a result of hostile action, in that the dropping and detonation of bombs is an act of war. 2. The applicant has provided no evidence to show whether the bomb was an enemy bomb or a bomb left from friendly force. However, regardless to when the explosion occurred, the FSM was wounded as a result of an accidental explosion while he and some other men were clearing a field looking for bombs. 3. Regulatory guidance states that an example of injuries or wounds which clearly do not justify award of the purple heart are accidents, to include explosive, aircraft, vehicular, and other accidental wounding not related to or caused by enemy action. BOARD VOTE: ________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ___lmd__ ___wdp__ ___jlp___ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20070004707, dated 3 October 2006. __________William D. Powers_______ CHAIRPERSON INDEX CASE ID AR20070011820 SUFFIX RECON YYYYMMDD DATE BOARDED 20070925 TYPE OF DISCHARGE (HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR) DATE OF DISCHARGE YYYYMMDD DISCHARGE AUTHORITY AR . . . . . DISCHARGE REASON BOARD DECISION DENY REVIEW AUTHORITY ISSUES 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.