MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION


         IN THE CASE OF:
        


         BOARD DATE: 24 June 2003
         DOCKET NUMBER: AR2003084335

         I certify that hereinafter is recorded the record of consideration of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in the case of the above-named individual.

Mr. Carl W. S. Chun		Director
Mr. Edmund P. Mercanti		Analyst

The following members, a quorum, were present:

Ms. Margaret K. Patterson		Chairperson
Mr. Ronald E. Blakely		Member
Mr. Frank C. Jones, II		Member

         The Board, established pursuant to authority contained in 10 U.S.C. 1552, convened at the call of the Chairperson on the above date. In accordance with Army Regulation 15-185, the application and the available military records pertinent to the corrective action requested were reviewed to determine whether to authorize a formal hearing, recommend that the records be corrected without a formal hearing, or to deny the application without a formal hearing if it is determined that insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice.

         The applicant requests correction of military records as stated in the application to the Board and as restated herein.

         The Board considered the following evidence:

         Exhibit A - Application for correction of military
records
         Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including
         advisory opinion, if any)

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APPLICANT REQUESTS: That he be awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) and the Purple Heart (PH).

APPLICANT STATES: That he was awarded both this badge and this award, but they are not reflected on his separation document. In a letter to his elected representative, the applicant stated that while in Korea around 1 March 1951,
“I was under fire during a withdrawal, and after falling from and ending up at the bottom of a very long hill. I see that my left leg was still attached but broken at the knee, and was in a very bad position next to me.”

EVIDENCE OF RECORD: The applicant's military records could not be located and are presumed to have been destroyed in the fire at the records repository at St. Louis, Missouri, in 1973. The following information was derived from alternative sources.

He enlisted in the Regular Army on 12 July 1950 and was awarded the military occupational specialty of typewriter serviceman in the Quartermaster Corps.

On 30 January 1953, the applicant was honorably discharged due to physical disability in pay grade E-3. His separation document shows that he was awarded the Korean Service Medal with 2 bronze service stars, and the United Nations Service Medal (UNSM).

A health record research project, commonly referred to as the "SGO Files", involved transposing the hospital admission card data from the periods of World War II and the Korean conflict onto magnetic tape. In 1988 the National Research Council made these tape files available to the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC). A searches of these files show that the applicant was admitted to the hospital on 26 April 1951 for internal derangement of his knee. These files also classify the applicant’s knee derangement as non-battle related.

The CIB was established by the War Department on 27 October 1943. Lieutenant General Lesley J. McNair, then the Army Ground Forces commanding general, was instrumental in its creation. He originally recommended that it be called the "fighter badge." The CIB was designed to enhance morale and the prestige of the "Queen of Battle." Then Secretary of War Henry Stinson said, "It is high time we recognize in a personal way the skill and heroism of the American infantry."






Originally, the Regimental Commander was the lowest level at which the CIB could be approved and its award was retroactive to 7 December 1941. There was a separate provision for badge holders to receive a $10 per month pay stipend, which was rescinded in 1948. Several factors led to the creation of the CIB, some of the most prominent factors are as follows:

         (a) The need for large numbers of well-trained infantry to bring about a successful conclusion to the war and the already critical shortage of infantrymen.

         (b) Of all soldiers, it was recognized that the infantryman continuously operated under the worst conditions and performed a mission which was not assigned to any other soldier or unit.

         (c) The infantry, a small portion of the total Armed Forces, was suffering the most casualties while receiving the least public recognition.

         (d) General Marshall's well known affinity for the ground forces soldier and, in particular, the infantryman. All these factors led to the establishment of the CIB, an award which would provide special recognition of the unique role of the Army infantryman, the only soldier whose daily mission is to close with and destroy the enemy and to seize and hold terrain. The badge was intended as an inducement for individuals to join the infantry while serving as a morale booster for infantrymen serving in every theater.

Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides for the award of the CIB to infantry officers and to enlisted and warrant officer personnel who have an infantry military occupational specialty. They must have served satisfactorily in active ground combat and while assigned or attached to an infantry unit of brigade, regimental or smaller size.

Army Regulation 600-8-22 also provides that the PH 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.









This regulation further provides for the award of the UNSM to soldiers who were dispatched to Korea or adjacent areas for service on behalf of the United Nations in the action in Korea between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954. The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is also authorized to members of the U.S. Armed Forces serving on active duty during the same period established for the award of the UNSM.

As a matter of information, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Korean War, the Government of the Republic of Korea issued the Korean War Service Medal to pay tribute to eligible Korean War veterans for their historic endeavors to preserve the freedom of the Republic of Korea and the free world. On 20 August 1999, the Department of Defense approved acceptance and wear of this foreign award. The Department of Defense has assigned responsibility to the Department of the Air Force for distribution of the Korean War Service Medal to eligible veterans of all services. To apply, veterans must provide a copy of their discharge paper to the Awards and Decorations Section, Headquarter, Air Force Personnel Center, 550 C Street West, Suite 12, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas 78150-4714. Once the Korean War Service Medal has been authorized by the Department of the Air Force, the applicant may apply to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records to add this foreign award to his separation document.

DISCUSSION: Considering all the evidence, allegations, and information presented by the applicant, together with the evidence of record and applicable law and regulations, it is concluded:

1. There is no evidence to show that the fall that resulted in the applicant’s deranged knee was the result of hostile action. The fact that the applicant’s unit was withdrawing under fire does not classify any injuries incurred in that withdrawal as a result of hostile action. As such, there is insufficient evidence to warrant awarding the applicant the PH.

2. As for the CIB, the applicant was a typewriter serviceman assigned to the Quartermaster Corps. The CIB was created and reserved for soldiers who hold an infantry MOS. As such, the applicant is not entitled to the CIB.

3. However, the applicant is entitled to the NDSM, but the addition of this award is administrative and does not require the authority of the Board.







4. In view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's request.

DETERMINATION: The applicant has failed to submit sufficient relevant evidence to demonstrate the existence of probable error or injustice.

NOTE: The Army Review Boards Agency, St. Louis, Missouri, will be requested to amend the applicant’s separation document to add the NDSM.

BOARD VOTE:

________ ________ ________ GRANT

________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___mkp__ ___reb__ ___fcj___ DENY APPLICATION

                  Carl W. S. Chun
                  Director, Army Board for Correction
of Military Records

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INDEX

CASE ID	AR2003084335
SUFFIX
RECON	YYYYMMDD
DATE BOARDED	20030624
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.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.