PROCEEDINGS


         IN THE CASE OF:
        

         BOARD DATE: 13 May 2003
         DOCKET NUMBER: AR2003084740


         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. Joseph A. Adriance		Analyst

The following members, a quorum, were present:

Ms. Margaret K. Patterson		Chairperson
Mr. Ted S. Kanamine		Member
Mr. Lawrence Foster		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, in effect, that the Purple Heart (PH) be added to his record.

3. The applicant states, in effect, that he suffered a bullet wound to his right leg while fighting with the 24^th Infantry Division in South Korea. He claims that although he was wounded in action, his separation document (DD Form 214) does not reflect that he was awarded the PH. He states that the criteria for award of the PH indicates that wounds sustained during military service while in combat merits the award of the PH. He requests his record be corrected to include the PH. In support of his application, he provides a newspaper clipping from his local newspaper that shows him in a California Air Force Base Hospital and that indicates he was resting at that facility after being wounded in action in Korea. He also provides a copy of the Western Union telegram from The Adjutant General of the Army that notified his mother that he had been wounded in action.

4. The applicant’s military records were not available to the Board for review. A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members’ records at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973. It is believed that the applicant’s records were lost in that fire. However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

5. The separation document from the applicant’s first period of service is not on file and was not provided by the applicant. A general, under honorable conditions discharge certificate provided by the applicant confirms that he was discharged on 27 April 1951, and reenlisted for 3 years on 28 April 1951, while he was serving at Fort Devens, Massachusetts. A second honorable discharge certificate issued on 8 April 1954 confirms that he was honorably discharged on that date.

6. The separation document (DD Form 214) issued to the applicant upon his separation in 1954 shows that he entered active duty on his last enlistment on
28 April 1951, and that he continuously served on active duty until being honorably separated on 8 April 1954. It also shows that he completed 2 years, 11 months, and 11 days of active military service on that particular enlistment and that he had completed at least 3 years of active military service on a prior enlistment. It also shows that he completed 1 year and 3 months of service overseas. This document is of such poor quality that the only earned awards that are distinguishable are the National Defense Service Medal and Army of Occupational Medal.

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7. The applicant provides extracts of newspaper articles that show him recuperating from wounds he received in action in Korea at a California Air Force Base Hospital. He also provides a copy of the Western Union Telegram,
dated 10 July 1950, that was sent to his mother from The Adjutant General (TAG) of the Army. It indicates that the applicant was wounded in action while serving as a private first class (PFC) in Korea on 7 July 1950. It further describes the wound as a penetrating bullet wound to his right calf.

8. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) prescribes Army policy and criteria concerning individual military awards. Paragraph 2-8 contains the regulatory guidance pertaining to awarding the PH. It states, in pertinent part, that in order to award a PH there must be evidence that a member was wounded or injured as a result of enemy action. The wound or injury for which the PH is being awarded must have required treatment by a medical officer, this treatment must be supported by medical treatment records that were made a matter of official record.

9. Paragraph 5-8 of the same regulation contains guidance on the Korean Service Medal (KSM). It states that it was awarded for service in Korea between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954. Paragraph 9-12 contains guidance on the United Nations Service Medal (UNSM). It states in pertinent part, that members who were dispatched to Korea or adjacent areas for service on behalf of the United Nations in the action in Korea are eligible for the award. It further specifies that personnel awarded the KSM automatically establish eligibility for the UNSM.

10. As a matter of information, on the occasion of the 50^th 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 service award to eligible US veterans of the Korean War, or their surviving next of kin. The medal is provided at no cost to veterans. The Department of Defense assigned responsibility to the Department of the
Air Force for distribution of the Korean War Service Medal to eligible veterans or their surviving next of kin.

CONCLUSIONS:

1. The Board notes the applicant’s contention that the PH should be added to his record based on his being wounded in action in Korea, and it finds this claim has merit.

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2. By regulation, in order to support awarding a member the PH, it is necessary to establish that a member was wounded in action, that the wound for which the award is being made required treatment by a medical officer, and that this treatment was made a matter of official record.

3. Although the standard evidentiary documentation required for awarding the PH is not present in this case, the Board does find the information provided in the newspaper article extracts, coupled with the Western Union Telegram provided by the applicant are sufficiently credible to support his claim of entitlement to the PH.

4. The newspaper extracts confirm that the applicant was recuperating, from a wound he received in action in Korea, in a military medical treatment facility in California. The Western Union Telegram provides the Army TAG’s confirmation that the applicant was wounded in action on 7 July 1950, while serving as a PFC in Korea, when he received a penetrating bullet wound to the right calf.

5. During its review of this case, the Board also discovered the applicant was entitled to other awards that are not included in his record or separation document. The evidence confirms the applicant completed qualifying service in Korea that entitles him to the KSM and the UNSM for his qualifying service in Korea. Thus, it concludes it would also be appropriate to add these awards to his records at this time. Campaign participation credit could not be determined from the available evidence.

6. The applicant is advised that to apply for the Korean War Service Medal, he should submit a copy of his DD Form 214 to the Awards and Decorations Section, Headquarters, Air Force Personnel Center, 550 C Street West, Suite 12, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas 78150-4714. A sample request form is provided. Once the Korean War Service Medal has been authorized by the Department of the Air Force, the applicant may apply to this Board to add this foreign award to his DD Form 214.

7. In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.

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RECOMMENDATION:

That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by awarding the individual concerned the Purple Heart, for being wounded in action on 7 July 1950, while serving as a private first class in Korea; by showing he is entitled to the Korean Service Medal and United Nations Service Medal for his qualifying service in Korea; and by providing him a corrected separation document that includes these awards.

BOARD VOTE:

________ ________ ________ GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___TK___ __LF____ ___MP___ DENY APPLICATION




                  Margaret K. Patterson
                  CHAIRPERSON

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INDEX

CASE ID	AR2003084740
SUFFIX
RECON
DATE BOARDED	2003/05/13
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	HD
DATE OF DISCHARGE	1954/04/08
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR 615-365
DISCHARGE REASON	ETS
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS
REVIEW AUTHORITY
ISSUES 1. 61	107.0015
2. 46	107.0000
3.
4.
5.
6.