RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        05 APRIL 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040004686


      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             |
|     |Ms. Deborah L. Brantley           |     |Senior Analyst       |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Mark Manning                  |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Thomas O'Shaughnessy          |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Jeanette McCants              |     |Member               |

      The Board considered the following evidence:

      Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records.

      Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion,
if any).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests that his records be corrected to reflect the
“CAR” (Combat Action Ribbon) and the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states both decorations were omitted from his separation
document.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his 2004 Department of Veterans
Affairs rating document showing receipt of a 50 percent disability rating
for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 16 January 1971.  The application submitted in this case
is dated
20 July 2004.

2.  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.  This provision of law allows the Army
Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse failure to file
within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines that it
would be in the interest of justice to do so.  In this case, the ABCMR will
conduct a review of the merits of the case to determine if it would be in
the interest of justice to excuse the applicant’s failure to timely file.

3.  Records available to the Board indicate that the applicant entered
active duty on 16 April 1969 and was trained as an armor crewman.  In
November 1969 he assumed duties as a tank driver with E Troop, 1st Cavalry
in Vietnam and remained with that unit until October 1970 when he returned
to the United States.

4.  The applicant was assigned to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, for the duration of
his service contract and on 16 January 1971 he was released from active
duty with an honorable characterization of service.

5.  There were no service medical records available to the Board or
provided by the applicant.  Item 40 (wounds) on the applicant’s Department
of the Army Form 20 (enlisted qualification record) is blank and the
applicant’s name is not among a list of individual’s reported as combat
casualties during the Vietnam War.  The document provided by the applicant
from the Department of Veterans Affairs does indicate that he is receiving
disability compensation for PTSD.
6.  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.  Awards for PTSD, however, are prohibited.

7.  The Combat Action Ribbon (CAR) was established in February 1969, and is
awarded to members of the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard for combat
action service.

8.  A review of Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-3 (Unit Citation and
Campaign Participation Credit Register) notes the applicant’s unit was
credited with participating in four designated campaigns (Vietnam Summer-
Fall 1969, Vietnam Winter-Spring 1970, Sanctuary Counteroffensive, and
Vietnam Counteroffensive Phase VIII) during the applicant’s period of
assignment.  Four bronze service stars on the Vietnam Service Medal, which
is recorded on his separation document, should reflect his campaign
participation.  The unit was also awarded the two awards of the Republic of
Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation with Palm during his tenure with the
organization.  The unit awards were also omitted from his separation
document.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  There is no medical evidence, and the applicant has not provided any,
which confirms that he was wounded as a result of hostile action while in
Vietnam and as such, there is no basis for an award of the Purple Heart.
The fact that he may be receiving disability compensation from the
Department of Veterans Affairs is not sufficiently compelling to conclude
that he was wounded as a result of hostile action.

2.  It is not entirely clear from the applicant’s request if he was in fact
requesting award of the Combat Action Ribbon when he requested award of the
CAR.  However, there is no “CAR” in the Army’s inventory and if he did mean
to request the Combat Action Ribbon, that award is awarded to members of
Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.

3.  Evidence shows that the applicant’s records contain administrative
error which does not require action by the board.  Therefore,
administrative correction of the applicant’s records will be accomplished
by the Case Management Support Division (CMSD), St. Louis, Missouri, as
outlined by the Board in paragraph 3 of the Board
Determination/Recommendation section below.
4.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 16 January 1971; therefore, the time
for the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or
injustice expired on
15 January 1974.  However, the applicant did not file within the 3-year
statute of limitations and has not provided a compelling explanation or
evidence to show that it would be in the interest of justice to excuse
failure to timely file in this case.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___MM__  __TO ___  ___JM___  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that the evidence presented does not demonstrate
the existence of a probable error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board
determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis
for correction of the records of the individual concerned.

2.  As a result, the Board further determined that there is no evidence
provided which shows that it would be in the interest of justice to excuse
the applicant's failure to timely file this application within the 3-year
statute of limitations prescribed by law.  Therefore, there is insufficient
basis to waive the statute of limitations for timely filing or for
correction of the records of the individual concerned.

3.  The Board determined that administrative error in the records of the
individual should be corrected.  Therefore, the Board requests that the
CMSD-St. Louis administratively correct the records of the individual
concerned to show entitlement to four bronze service stars on his Vietnam
Service Medal and two awards of the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross
Unit Citation with Palm.



                                  ______Mark Manning_______
                                            CHAIRPERSON


                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040004686                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050405                                |
|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.       |107.00                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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