RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        28 JUNE 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040009131


      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 that his record be corrected to show award of
the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states that he was treated at a regimental Army hospital
in Bepu, Japan in 1951 or 1952.  He was hospitalized for one month for
surgeries to remove a fragmentation wound from his infected back.

3.  The applicant provides no evidence.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 31 December 1970.  The application submitted in this case
is dated 18 August 2003.

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 served in the Naval Reserve from 18 February 1948 to 18
May 1950.  He enlisted in the Army on 19 May 1950 and served overseas in
Japan and in Korea during the Korean War, where he was awarded the Army of
Occupation Medal (Japan), the United Nations Service Medal, and the Korean
Service Medal with one bronze service star.  He served with the
         187th Regimental Combat Team during the period for which it was
awarded the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for its actions
during the Korean War, and with the 10th Field Artillery Battalion during
the period when it was awarded the Bravery Gold Medal of Greece for its
actions during the Korean War.  The applicant participated in three
campaigns during the Korean War.

4.  Information from the hospital admission cards created by the Office of
The Surgeon General shows that he was hospitalized for 7 days in Japan in
January 1952 because of cellulitis.

5.  The applicant was discharged at Fort Lewis, Washington on 18 May 1953.
His DD Form 214 (Report of Separation), which he signed attesting to its
accuracy, does not contain an entry in item 29 (Wounds Received as a Result
of Action with Enemy Forces).  The applicant’s service record contains a
section to record wounds received through enemy action.  That section
contains no entry.
6.  The applicant reenlisted in the Army in August 1953 and continued his
military service virtually without interruption until his retirement with
more than 20 years of active military service on 31 December 1970.  His
service records show that he served in Germany for one year in 1956 and
1957, and served another tour of duty in Korea, from October 1959 to
September 1960.  His records, however, do not show that he was wounded in
action.

7.  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.

8.  Service (campaign) medals and service ribbons denote honorable
performance of military duty within specified limited dates in specified
geographical areas.  Army Regulation 600-8-22, paragraph 6-7 provides for
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.  A silver star is worn instead of five bronze
service stars.

9.  Army Human Resources Command Message (Date Time Group 9 February 2004)
published implementing instructions for award of the Korea Defense Service
Medal.  This message specified criteria for the award of the Korea Defense
Service Medal as follows:  a) service members of the armed forces must have
served in support of the defense of the Republic of Korea from 28 July 1954
through a future date to be determined by the Secretary of Defense;  b) the
area of eligibility encompasses all land area of the Republic of Korea, and
the contiguous water out to 12 nautical miles, and all air spaces above the
land and water areas;  c) service members must have been mobilized with
units or assigned or attached to units operating in the area of eligibility
and have been physically deployed in the area of eligibility for 30
consecutive or 60 non-consecutive days.

10.  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.

11.  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.  Noted is the fact that the applicant was hospitalized in Japan in
January 1952. Nonetheless, there is no evidence and the applicant has not
provided any to show that hospitalization and treatment was because of
wounds received as a result of enemy action.  The applicant’s service
records do not show that he was wounded.  His 1953 separation document,
which he himself signed, did not indicate that he had been wounded in
action.  Consequently, in the absence of evidence showing that the
applicant was wounded as a result of hostile action, there are no grounds
for the Board to award the Purple Heart.

2.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 31 December 1970; therefore, the time
for the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or
injustice expired on    30 December 1973.  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 three bronze service stars, the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit
Citation, the Bravery Gold Medal of Greece, and the Korea Defense Service
Medal.




                                  ______Joe Schroeder________
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040009131                           |
|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.       |110.04                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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