| Mr. Carl W. S. Chun | Director | |
| Ms. Deborah L. Brantley | Senior Analyst |
| Mr. Raymond V. O’Connor | Chairperson | |
| Mr. Eric N. Andersen | Member | |
| Mr. Thomas E. O’Shaughnessy | Member |
APPLICANT REQUESTS: In effect, award of the Purple Heart. He makes no statement and submits no evidence in support of his request.
PURPOSE: To determine whether the application was submitted within the time limit established by law, and if not, whether it is in the interest of justice to excuse the failure to timely file.
EVIDENCE OF RECORD: The applicant's military records show:
He entered active duty on 2 November 1967 and served in Vietnam between May 1968 and May 1969. He was released from active duty on 5 November 1970. Neither his DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) nor his DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) reflect entitlement to the Purple Heart. Item 40 (wounds) on his DA Form 20 is blank. The applicant authenticated his DA Form 20 in November 1969 and his DD Form 214 on the day of his release from active duty.
A 1973 disability claim document indicates the applicant reported being treated for pin worms and malaria while in Vietnam but makes no mention of any wounds sustained as a result of hostile actions.
The applicant served an additional period of active duty between January 1971 and January 1977 but made no mention of an award of the Purple Heart and his records do not reflect entitlement to that award.
Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for wounds 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.
There is no evidence, and the applicant has not provided any, which confirms he was wounded as a result of hostile action and as such there is no basis for an award of the Purple Heart.
Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice. Failure to file within 3 years may be excused by a correction board if it finds it would be in the interest of justice to do so.
DISCUSSION: The alleged error or injustice was, or with reasonable diligence should have been discovered on 24 January 1977, the date he was last discharged from the active Army. The time for the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or injustice expired on 24 January 1980.
The application is dated 5 July 2001 and the applicant has not explained or otherwise satisfactorily demonstrated by competent evidence that it would be in the interest of justice to excuse the failure to apply within the time allotted.
DETERMINATION: The subject application was not submitted within the time required. The applicant has not presented and the records do not contain sufficient justification to conclude that it would be in the interest of justice to grant the relief requested or to excuse the failure to file within the time prescribed by law. Prior to reaching this determination the Board looked at the applicant's entire file. It was only after all aspects of his case had been considered and it had been concluded that there was no basis to recommend a correction of his record that the Board considered the statute of limitations. Had the Board determined that an error or injustice existed it would have recommended relief in spite of the applicant's failure to submit his application within the three-year time limit.
BOARD VOTE:
________ ________ ________ EXCUSE FAILURE TO TIMELY FILE
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
__RVO__ __ENA __ __TEO __ CONCUR WITH DETERMINATION
| CASE ID | AR2001060179 |
| SUFFIX | |
| RECON | YYYYMMDD |
| DATE BOARDED | 20010927 |
| 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. | 142.00 |
| 2. | |
| 3. | |
| 4. | |
| 5. | |
| 6. |
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