RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        28 JUNE 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040008910


      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. Kenneth H. Aucock             |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Joe Schroeder                 |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Lawrence Foster               |     |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 award of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states that the records do not show that he was injured
and in the hospital.  He was not issued the Purple Heart.  The doctors were
not correct concerning his condition.  When he left the service in October
1951 doctors treated him for three years before he could work, and then he
could not hold a steady job.  He is 75 years old and needs help.  He has
tried to get disability from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) since
1951.  He was informed that his medical records did not show where he was
injured.  He would not have been hospitalized, sent home, and discharged if
he was not injured.

3.  The applicant provides no evidence.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 9 August 1951.  The application submitted in this case is
dated       11 October 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.  The applicant’s complete military records are 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 or destroyed in that fire.
However, there are sufficient documents remaining, to include medical
records, for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

4.  The applicant’s DD Form 214 (Report of Separation) shows that he
entered on active duty on 12 October 1950 at Fort Hood, Texas, served in
Korea during the Korean War with Company D, 38th Infantry Regiment, and was
released from active duty on 9 August 1951.  His DD Form 214 shows that he
had 4 months and 29 days of foreign service, that he had 46 days of lost
time, and that he had 2 years, 4 months, and 28 days of prior service (for
pay purposes).  Item 29 (Wounds Received as a Result of Action with Enemy
Forces) of his DD Form 214 contains the word, “NONE.”  His DD Form 214
shows that he was awarded the Korean Service Medal.

5.  A 30 April 1951 report prepared by the Neuropsychiatric Service, 10th
Station Hospital in Korea indicates that the applicant arrived in Korea on
25 February 1951, and that he was a jeep driver with Company D, 38th
Infantry Regiment, and had no actual combat in the forward area.  The
report showed that the applicant complained of a problem with his back,
stating, “Something wrong with my back. It has been getting pretty bad
lately.  I get a catch in it.  No history of any back injury.”  The report
indicated that the applicant stated that he had a little trouble with his
back in 1948 while in the Army, and that it started bothering him about
3 or 4 months ago.  The report stated that the applicant served in the Army
from May 1948 to 11 January 1950 and received a hardship discharge, and
that he was called back to active duty in October 1950.  It indicated that
he was AWOL (absent without leave) for 14 days, and spent 30 days in the
stockade.  The applicant stated that his back was not improving, but stayed
the same.  The report indicated that all examinations were negative, but he
stated that he knew something was wrong.  The report showed that the
applicant tried three times to get in the Army and another person helped
him with the test.  He was discharged to duty with the comment that he
could not be of any use in “this zone.”

6.  The applicant’s medical records show that he underwent psychiatric
treatment in late 1948 and early 1949, stemming from his complaints of
headaches, dating from when he was 5 years old.  An 18 August 1948 medical
report shows that he complained of pain in his back.

7.  A 28 May 1951 medical report shows that the applicant was evacuated for
back trouble and was also diagnosed as having an inadequate personality.
He was evacuated to Pusan, Korea and told he would not be returned to his
outfit, but was returned to the line.  Another report of that same date
shows that the applicant complained of pain in his lumbar spine that was
recurrent for two to three years, especially after lifting.

8.  Medical records in April and May 1951 show that the applicant
complained of low back pain.

9.  A 7 June 1951 medical record shows that the applicant was transferred
from the 10th Station Hospital to the Camp Omiya Station Hospital in Japan
on 18 May 1951.  That record shows that the applicant’s condition was
diagnosed as inadequate personality, acute, manifested by inadequate
response to social, intellectual, and physical demands.  His condition
existed prior to service.  His physical profile serial was 1 1 1 1 1 3.  A
medical report of the previous day indicates that the applicant was unfit
for combat because of the above-mentioned diagnosis.  That report contained
the remark that the applicant’s back trouble had no physical basis and he
should not be re-hospitalized for it.

10.  The evidence shows that the applicant served in Korea from February
1951 until his evacuation to Japan in May 1951.  He participated in two
campaigns during the Korean War.  The 38th Infantry Regiment was awarded
the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for its actions while he
was assigned to that organization.

11  There is no evidence to show that the applicant was wounded as a result
of hostile action.

12.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides that the Purple Heart is awarded for
a wound 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, and the medical treatment must have
been made a matter of official record.

13.  The United Nations Service Medal is awarded to members of the armed
forces of the United States dispatched to Korea on behalf of the United
Nations in the action in Korea.  Personnel awarded the Korean Service Medal
automatically establish eligibility for the United Nations Service Medal.

14.  Army Regulation 600-8-22, paragraph 6-7 provides for bronze service
stars for wear on campaign and service ribbons to denote an additional
award, and states that service stars are authorized for wear on the Korean
Service Medal Campaign Medal.  A silver service star is worn instead of
five bronze service stars.

15.  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 to eligible US veterans of the
Korean War, or their surviving next of kin.  The medal is provided at no
cost to the veterans.

16.  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 or their surviving next of kin.  To apply,
veterans must provide a copy of their discharge paper (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 being provided to the applicant.  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    DD Form 214.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant’s medical records show that he was seen and treated for
his alleged back problems on numerous occasions.  Nonetheless, there is no
evidence, and the applicant has not submitted any, to show that he was
wounded as a result of hostile action.  Consequently, the applicant is not
entitled to award of the Purple Heart.

2.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 9 August 1951; therefore, the time for
the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or injustice
expired on           8 August 1954.  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.

3.  The evidence shows that the applicant’s record contains administrative
error that does not require action by the Board.  The necessary corrections
will be accomplished administratively by the Case Management Support
Division (CMSD), St. Louis, Missouri, as outlined in paragraph 3 of the
Determination/Recommendation section below.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___JS  __  ___LF___  ___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 Case Management Support Division at St. Louis is requested to
correct the applicant’s records to show award of the Korean Service Medal
with two bronze service stars, the United Nations Service Medal, and the
Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation.




                                  ______Joe Schroeder_______
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040008910                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050628                                |
|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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