| Mr. Carl W. S. Chun | Director | |
| Ms. Deyon D. Battle | Analyst |
| Ms. Margaret K. Patterson | Chairperson | |
| Ms. Karol A. Kennedy | Member | |
| Mr. Richard T. Dunbar | Member |
2. The applicant requests that he be awarded the Purple Heart for wounds incurred in action on 15 January 1945.
3. The applicant states that he is entitled to the Purple Heart because he was wounded in action during the Battle of the Bulge and that his Enlisted Record and Report of Separation (WD AGO Form 53-55) shows that he was wounded. In support of his application he submits a copy of Form 52b-Medical Department, United States Army, and a copy of a Supplemental Record dated 16 January 1945.
4. The applicant's military records were lost or destroyed in the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973. Information herein was obtained from alternate sources.
5. He was inducted into the Army on 23 March 1943 and he successfully completed his training as a rifleman. On 21 October 1944, he was transferred to the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater of Operations.
6. His awards include the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, the American Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Expert Badge (M-1 Rifle).
7. The copy of Form 52b-Medical Department, United States Army dated 15 January 1945, and a copy of a Supplemental Record dated 16 January 1945 shows that the applicant was in Belgium on 15 January 1945, when he was evacuated from the front lines to the hospital for frost or cold injuries to both of his feet.
8. The applicant returned to the Continental United States on 15 August 1945 and he was honorably discharged for the Convenience of the Government on 6 December 1945. Item number 34 (Wounds Received in Action) on the WD AGO Form 53-55 that he was furnished at the time of his discharge shows that he was wounded on 15 January 1945 while he was in Germany.
9. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart (PH) is awarded for a wound sustained as a result of hostile action. Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that: (1) the wound was the result of hostile action; (2) the wound required medical treatment; and (3) the medical treatment was made a matter of official record.
10. Award of the Purple Heart (PH) for frostbite injuries is currently prohibited; however, until 1951, Army Regulation 600-45, which governed the award of Army decorations, defined a “wound” as an injury to any part of the body from an
outside force, element, or agent sustained while in action against an armed enemy or as a result of a hostile act of such enemy. An “element” was further defined as weather and the award of the Purple Heart to personnel who were severely frostbitten while actually engaged in combat was authorized.
11. Army Regulation 600-8-22 also provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze Star Medal (BSM) 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 was evacuated on 15 January 1945 and hospitalized for frost injuries to both of his feet. Although under today’s standards, he would not qualify for award of the Purple Heart, in accordance with regulations then in effect, he did meet the criteria for award of the Purple Heart.
2. Additionally, he is entitled to the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service based on his award of the Combat Infantryman Badge.
3. He should have been awarded the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star Medal and his WD AGO Form 53-55 should be amended to reflect those awards.
4. In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.
RECOMMENDATION:
That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected:
a. by awarding the individual concerned the Purple Heart for injuries sustained in combat on 15 January 1945 while serving in the pay grade of E-3.
b. by awarding him the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service during World War II based on his award of the Combat Infantryman Badge.
BOARD VOTE:
__rtd ___ ___mkp__ ___kak __ GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION
___Margaret K. Patterson___
CHAIRPERSON
| CASE ID | AR2001057721 |
| SUFFIX | |
| RECON | YYYYMMDD |
| DATE BOARDED | 2001/10/02 |
| TYPE OF DISCHARGE | |
| DATE OF DISCHARGE | |
| DISCHARGE AUTHORITY | |
| DISCHARGE REASON | |
| BOARD DECISION | GRANT PLUS |
| REVIEW AUTHORITY | |
| ISSUES 1. 46 | 107.0000 |
| 2. 60 | 107.0014 |
| 3. 61 | 107.0015 |
| 4. | |
| 5. | |
| 6. |
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