RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF: 	DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2014-02716

					COUNSEL:  NONE
                                    
		HEARING DESIRED:  YES



APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

The casualty report of his father’s death be corrected to reflect 
“battle-related” and his father be awarded the Purple Heart Medal 
(PH).


APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

His father is being wrongfully denied the PH Medal because the 
DD Form 1300, Report of Casualty, dated 21 Apr 72, incorrectly 
documents his father’s death as nonbattle related.  The actions 
which caused his father’s death were indeed battle related and the 
DD Form 1300, dated 11 Apr 72, correctly documents his father’s 
death as battle related.  He believes the status of his father’s 
death was changed because of security reasons.  The mission was a 
CIA operation in Laos and considered top secret mission.  His 
father was responding to an ammunition dump destroyed by enemy 
forces and the enemy had rigged several pieces of ordnance left 
behind as booby-traps.  Therefore, the ordnance that killed his 
father was a result of enemy action; these conditions justify the 
award of the PH Medal.  The Noncommissioned Officer in Charge of 
his father’s team at the time of his death has provided several 
statements attesting to the conditions of his father’s death and 
validates the position the death was battle related.  He contends 
the discrepancies between the two casualty reports were only 
recently discovered during a Congressional inquiry.

The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at 
Exhibit A.


STATEMENT OF FACTS:

On 7 Apr 72, the applicant was serving as a member of the regular 
Air Force, in the grade of technical sergeant (E-6), when he was 
killed in the line of duty.

On 11 Apr 72, the DD Form 1300, Report of Casualty, casualty 
report 673 (interim), indicates the applicant’s death was battle 
related.

On 21 Apr 72, the DD Form 1300, Report of Casualty, casualty 
report 759 (final), indicates the applicant’s death was nonbattle 
related.

On 6 Jul 72, the applicant was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for 
meritorious achievement while serving with friendly foreign forces 
engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force; the 
citation reads “            distinguished himself by meritorious 
service as an        while engaged in operations against an 
opposing armed force from 21 Jan 71 to 7 Apr 72.  During this 
period, while exposed to extreme danger from hostile enemy forces, 
sensitive armed munitions, enemy booby traps and clandestine 
devices, Sergeant Milton successfully accomplished priority 
special missions at classified locations in a combat zone.  While 
clearing explosive hazards from an ammunition supply point, that 
had been destroyed by the enemy, Sergeant         lost his life.  
By his heroic actions and unselfish dedication to duty in the 
service of his country, Sergeant      has reflected great credit 
on himself and the United States Air Force.”

The PH Medal is awarded to members of the United States Armed 
Forces who have been wounded, killed, or who have died or may 
hereafter die from wounds received in action against an enemy of 
the United States or opposing force as a result of an act of any 
such enemy or opposing armed forces, an international terrorist 
attack or during military operations while serving as a part of a 
peacekeeping force.  A wound for which the award is made must have 
required treatment of the wound and shall be documented in the 
service members medical and/or health record.  Award of the PH 
Medal may be made for wounds treated by a medical professional 
other than a medical officer, provided a medical officer includes 
a statement in the service member's medical record that the extent 
of the wounds were such that they would have required treatment by 
a medical officer if one had been available to treat them.

In June 2000, the applicant’s family submitted a request to the PH 
Review Board, through the office of Congresswoman     .  The PH 
Review Board denied the applicant’s request.

In June 2013, the applicant’s family submitted a second request to 
the PH Review Board, through the office of Congressman     .  The 
PH Review Board stood by the original disapproval and denied the 
applicant’s second request for the PH Medal.

In August 2013, the applicant’s family submitted a third request 
to the PH Review Board.  Although a member of the applicant’s 
chain of command at the time of his death provided information, 
the PH Review Board did not convene because it was determined no 
new evidence had been presented by the applicant.

The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are 
contained in the memoranda prepared by the Air Force offices of 
primary responsibility (OPR), which are attached at Exhibits C 
and D.


AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPFCS recommends denial, indicating there is no evidence of 
an error or an injustice.  An initial DD Form 1300, Report of 
Casualty, is used to ensure families have an official document to 
get the decedents affairs in order.  After a final determination 
on the circumstance surrounding a member's death is determined, a 
final DD Form 1300 is published.  The final DD Form 1300 replaces 
the initial form as the official death certificate.  After a 
review of the circumstances surrounding the applicant’s death, 
compelling evidence to overturn the determination on the final DD 
Form 1300 was not found.

A complete copy of the AFPC/DPFCS evaluation is at Exhibit C.

AFPC/DPSID recommends denial, indicating there is no evidence of 
an error or an injustice.  The evidence was presented to the PH 
Review Board twice and award of the PH Medal was disapproved 
twice.  The evidence regarding the applicant’s death does not meet 
the criteria for award of the PH Medal and there is no new 
substantial evidence with this request.  Specifically, the 
supervisor was not present during the incident that caused the 
applicant's death; consequently his statement is not an eyewitness 
account.  Further, there is supposition that there were booby 
traps or Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) present; however, no 
evidence was presented, nor eyewitness statements attesting to, an 
IED being the cause of the explosion.  Additionally, while there 
are statements that munitions become armed when exposed to an 
explosion, no specific evidence was presented to support this 
claim.  To grant relief would be contrary to the criteria 
established by DoDM 1348.33, Secretary of the Air Force, Chief of 
Staff, and/or the War Department.

A complete copy of the AFPC/DPSID evaluation is at Exhibit D.


APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant 
on 17 Dec 14 for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit D).  
As of this date, no response has been received by this office.





FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS OF THE BOARD:

After careful consideration of applicant’s request and the 
available evidence of record, we find the application untimely.  
Applicant did not file within three years after the alleged error 
or injustice was discovered as required by Title 10, United States 
Code, Section 1552 and Air Force Instruction 36-2603.  Applicant 
has not shown a plausible reason for the delay in filing, and we 
are not persuaded that the record raises issues of error or 
injustice which require resolution on the merits.  Thus, we cannot 
conclude it would be in the interest of justice to excuse the 
applicant’s failure to file in a timely manner.

THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:

The application was not timely filed and it would not be in the 
interest of justice to waive the untimeliness.  It is the decision 
of the Board, therefore, to reject the application as untimely.


The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number 
BC-2014-02716 in Executive Session on 22 Mar 15 under the 
provisions of AFI 36-2603:

	, Panel Chair
	, Member
	, Member

The following documentary evidence pertaining was considered:

	Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 1 Jul 14, w/atchs.
	Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
	Exhibit C.  Memorandum, AFPC/DPFCS, dated 22 Aug 14.
	Exhibit D.  Memorandum, AFPC/DPSID, dated 24 Nov 14.
Exhibit E.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 17 Dec 14.