APPLICANT REQUESTS: The widow of the former service member (FSM) requests that he be awarded the Purple Heart for injuries suffered in World War II.
APPLICANT STATES: That the FSM was wounded in Italy on 18 November 1943 and did not receive the Purple Heart.
EVIDENCE OF RECORD: The FSMs military records were lost or destroyed in the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973. Information herein was obtained from reconstructed records.
He was inducted on 14 January 1942 and served 10 months and 11 days in the European Theater of Operations. He was honorably discharged on 9 November 1945 and subsequently awarded disability compensation for chronic bronchial asthma aggravated by his war service.
The FSMs enlisted record reflects the entry None in the block entitled wounds received in action. Medical records show, however, that he was admitted to an Army hospital in Italy for treatment of asthma in November 1943. He was transferred to Ireland and then England and eventually evacuated to the States for treatment of his asthmatic condition. The medical records do not show that he was treated for any combat related wounds.
The FSMs separation physical examination conducted on 9 November 1945 contains no statements by either the FSM or the examining physician concerning wounds resulting from combat.
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.
DISCUSSION: Considering all the evidence, allegations, and information presented by the applicant, together with the evidence of record, applicable law and regulations, it is concluded:
1. Based on the available personnel and medical records, there is no evidence that the FSM suffered any combat related injuries during his service that would qualify him for award of the Purple Heart.
2. While the records reflects an apparently excellent soldier who had over 2 years of wartime service, his only hospitalization occurred as the result of a disease process rather than wounds or injuries attributable to hostile action.
3. In order to justify correction of a military record, the applicant must show to the satisfaction of the Board, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in error or unjust. The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would satisfy this requirement.
4. In view of the foregoing, there appears to be no basis for granting the applicants request.
DETERMINATION: The applicant has failed to submit sufficient relevant evidence to demonstrate the existence of probable error or injustice.
BOARD VOTE:
GRANT
GRANT FORMAL HEARING
DENY APPLICATION
Karl F. Schneider
Acting Director
ARMY | BCMR | CY2011 | 20110012517
She also requests, in effect, correction of his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation Honorable Discharge) to show the Combat Infantryman Badge. The FSM's complete military records are not available to the Board for review. His WD AGO Form 24 does not show any combat wounds or awards of the Purple Heart or the Combat Infantryman Badge.
ARMY | BCMR | CY2011 | 20110014626
The applicant, the wife of a deceased former service member (FSM), requests award of the Purple Heart for injuries her husband received in Holland during World War II (WWII). The FSM's military records are not available to the Board for review. The applicant provided the FSM's medical records.
ARMY | BCMR | CY1996 | 9606134C070209
APPLICANT REQUESTS: The widow of the former service member (FSM) requests that he be awarded the Purple Heart for injuries suffered in World War II. 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. DISCUSSION: Considering all the evidence, allegations, and information presented by the applicant, together...
ARMY | BCMR | CY2009 | 20090005297
Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any). Furthermore, he is also entitled to award of the Bronze Star Medal based on award of this Combat Infantryman Badge and correction of his records to show this award; c. The evidence of record shows that the FSM was captured in Italy on 26 October 1944 and was transferred to Germany on 7 December 1944 where he remained until at least 5 January 1945. The evidence of record shows the FSM served from 10...
ARMY | BCMR | CY2011 | 20110004661
The applicant, the son of a deceased former service member (FSM), requests award of the Purple Heart for injuries his father sustained in World War II (WWII), and correction of the FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation Honorable Discharge) to show this award. As a secondary issue, the applicant requests correction of the FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55 to show award of the: * Rome Liberation Medal (commemorative medal) * World War II Victory Medal * Army of Occupation...
ARMY | BCMR | CY2010 | 20100028691
The applicant provides: * WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation) * DD Form 215 (Correction to DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty)) * U.S. Air Force (USAF) WD AGO Form 53 and DD Form 214(Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States) * VA Form 8-1520 (Decision of Disability Insurance Claims) * Two Internet printouts of POW Roster * Self-authored POW timelines * Letter from FSM son to his Member of Congress * Statement from...
ARMY | BCMR | CY2008 | 20080008971
There is no evidence in the applicant's military service records that show he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge or the Bronze Star Medal. Therefore, the evidence of record shows that the FSM qualified for award of the Combat Infantryman Badge on 30 November 1943 based on his exemplary conduct in ground combat against the enemy during World War II. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by: a. awarding the...
ARMY | BCMR | CY2010 | 20100010311
The applicant requests, through his Member of Congress, the records of his father, a former service member (FSM), be corrected to show award of the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Bronze Star Medal, and the Purple Heart, and payment of combat pay for his actions on 26 December 1944. The applicant provides: * letter from the National Archives and Records Administration * WD AGO Form 100 (Separation Qualification Record) * letter orders, dated 7 June 1945 * letter from the Center of Military...
ARMY | BCMR | CY2009 | 20090014233
The applicant states that the FSM should be awarded the Purple Heart for an injury he suffered during war service and the subsequent deformity of his leg. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained while in action against an enemy or as a result of hostile action. Notwithstanding the applicant's sincerity, in the absence of additional documentation that conclusively shows the FSM was wounded or injured as a...
ARMY | BCMR | CY2010 | 20100025730
THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant's Representative in Congress states the applicant is 88 years old and has been fighting for the FSM's Purple Heart since her first application in May 2008. Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.