PROCEEDINGS


         IN THE CASE OF:
        

         BOARD DATE: 6 November 2001
         DOCKET NUMBER: AR2001058659


         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:

Ms. Deborah S. Jacobs		Chairperson
Mr. Elzey J. Arledge		Member
Mr. Donald P. Hupman		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.

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2. The applicant requests correction of his records to show that he was captured by the German Army near Grantorto, Italy, and held as a prisoner of war from 28 April to 2 May 1945.

3. The applicant states that his military record omits the facts regarding his capture by German soldiers and prisoner of war status during World War II. In support of this application, dated 22 May 2001, the applicant provided an affidavit which states:

         “I [applicant’s name omitted], 350th Infantry Regiment, 88th Division, was captured, with the following listed members of my unit, by personnel of the German Army, on or about the 28th of April, 1945 and then freed by Italian partisans on or about 2 May 1945. I witnessed the capture of fellow soldiers listed below: [50 names omitted]. I certify the above named soldiers were held with me during the my captivity and should be recognized as former prisoners of war with a correction to their military records.”

4. The applicant’s military records show that he entered active duty in an enlisted status and arrived in the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater of Operations in April 1944. He was commissioned effective 25 March 1945 and served as an infantry unit leader until he returned to the United States in August 1945. The applicant was separated from active duty effective 23 January 1946. He returned to active duty effective 8 September 1948 and continued to serve until his separation from active duty effective 28 February 1966 with placement on the Retired List at the rank of major on 1 March 1966.

5. The applicant’s records do not show that he was a prisoner of war. There is no evidence of record or other indication that the applicant ever received the Prisoner of War Medal.

6. The applicant’s WD AGO Form 24 (Service Record), which covers his enlisted service from 24 June 1942 to 24 March 1945, shows that he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge by 350th Infantry Regiment General Order 14, dated 1 August 1944.

7. The applicant’s WD AGO 53-98 (Military Record and Report of Separation-Certificate of Service), which covers his officer service from 25 March 1945 through 23 January 1946 shows he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal. His personnel records contain a WD AGO Form 0708 (Record of Award of Decoration) which shows that the applicant was awarded this Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service in combat for the period 11 May 1944 to 2 May 1945.

8. The applicant’s WD AGO 53-98 and his DD Form 214, which cover all of his officer service, do not show award of the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge. There is no evidence in the applicant’s records that he ever received award of the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge.

9. The Board is in possession of a copy of a 19 February 1982 document which is prepared on 88th Infantry Division Association stationary and which is purported to list the rank, name, unit of assignment of the soldiers of the 350th Infantry Regiment who “were captured near Grantorto, Italy, on the night of
29-30 April 1945.” The document states that this list was compiled from the notebook of the lieutenant who was the senior officer among those captured. The applicant’s rank, name and unit is one of the 52 names listed in this document.

10. The Board is also in possession of unit histories which describe the capture of soldiers from the Companies B; E; Cannon; Headquarters, 1st Battalion; G; K; D; F; a medic from Headquarters, 2nd Battalion; and a couple of soldiers from the 338th Field Artillery near Grantorto, Italy, on the night of 29-30 April 1945.

11. Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, for award of the POW Medal. The regulation states that the POW Medal was authorized on 8 November 1985 and is awarded to individuals who in past armed conflicts were taken prisoner or held captive.

12. Army Regulation 635-5 establishes the standardized policy for preparing and distributing discharge documents. In pertinent part, it directs that, in the case of prisoners of war, the unit of assignment, country and dates of capture and release will be entered in the “Remarks” section of the discharge document.

13. 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. This provision did not go into effect until 10 September 1947 when Change 12 to Army Regulation 600-45 (Decorations) was published; therefore, many soldiers separated prior to this date are entitled to award of the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge, but have never been awarded the Bronze Star Medal.

14. The bronze oak leaf cluster is awarded to denote the second and succeeding awards of certain decorations, among which is the Bronze Star Medal.

CONCLUSIONS:

1. There is no evidence of record which lists the applicant as a prisoner of war during World War II.

2. The Board considered the affidavit prepared on 7 June 2001 which attests the applicant and 51 other persons were captured on 28 April 1945. In the absence of evidence of record to show the applicant was a prisoner of war, this affidavit prepared over 55 years after the event in question is not by itself sufficient as a basis for award of the Prisoner of War Medal in this specific case.

3. The Board reviewed the 19 February 1992 document which listed the names of 52 personnel, including the applicant, as being captured on the night of 29-30 April 1945 near Grantorto, Italy. The Board also reviewed the 88th Infantry Division unit histories which described the capture of these soldiers. On the basis of these documents, the Board determined that the applicant was among those captured on 29 April 1945 by German soldiers. Therefore, he is entitled to award of the Prisoner of War Medal and correction of his records to show this award.

4. Since current regulations require discharge documents to show prisoner of war status, the Board determined that, based on these current standards, it is appropriate to correct the applicant’s records to show his prisoner of war status. Therefore, the applicant is entitled to correction of his records to show the entry “Prisoner of War, 350th Infantry Regiment, Italy, 450429-450502.”

5. The applicant was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge for exemplary conduct in ground combat during World War II; therefore, he is also entitled to award of the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge. This award of the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge is the applicant’s second award of the Bronze Star Medal which is correctly known as the Bronze Star Medal (First Oak Leaf Cluster). As a result, the applicant is also entitled to correction of his DD Form 214 with an effective 28 February 1966 to show award of the Bronze Star Medal (First Oak Leaf Cluster).

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:

         a. by awarding the individual concerned the Prisoner of War Medal;

         b. by correcting his records to show the entry “Prisoner of War, 350th Infantry Regiment, Italy, 450429-450502.”; and

         c. by awarding him the Bronze Star Medal based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge and, based on this award, correcting his records to show entitlement to award of the Bronze Star Medal (First Oak Leaf Cluster).

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

BOARD VOTE:

__DPH__ __DSJ___ __EJA__ GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION




                  _Ms. Deborah S. Jacobs_
                  CHAIRPERSON

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INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001058659
SUFFIX
RECON	YYYYMMDD
DATE BOARDED	20011106
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR . . . . .
DISCHARGE REASON
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS
REVIEW AUTHORITY	MR SCHNEIDER
ISSUES 1.	107.0000.0000
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.