RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:            27 JULY 2004
      DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2004100913


      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. Melvin Meyer                  |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Thomas O'Shaughnessy          |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Eloise Prendergast            |     |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).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests award of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states he lost his Purple Heart and it is not reflected
on his separation document.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his separation document and a copy of
his Bronze Star Medal with "V" device award order, which confirms that he
was wounded during the action for which he was awarded the Bronze Star
Medal.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an error or injustice which
occurred on 1 October 1954.  The application submitted in this case is
dated
17 September 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 limitation 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 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, the
documents provided by the applicant were sufficient to reconstruct a record
for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

4.  The applicant's separation document indicates that he served on active
duty between 2 October 1952 and 1 October 1954.  He served more than 14
months overseas where he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, the
Korean Service Medal, and a Bronze Star Medal with "V" device.

5.  His Bronze Star Medal award order states that the applicant was
"wounded, but refused to leave the wounded comrade."  His combat wound is
also confirmed in item 27 (wounds received as a result of action with enemy
forces), which reflects "Korea 12 June 1953."  There is, however, no
indication that the applicant was ever awarded the Purple Heart.  At the
time the applicant was wounded, he was assigned to Company B, 15th Infantry
Regiment.

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.

7.  A review of Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1 (Unit Citation and
Campaign Participation Credit Register) notes the applicant’s unit was
awarded Distinguished Unit Citation, now known as the Presidential Unit
Citation, for actions on 11 and 12 June 1953, the Republic of Korea
Presidential Unit Citation for the period 10 June through 14 June 1953, and
the Bravery Gold Medal of Greece for the period of the Korean war.  The
unit awards were also omitted from his separation document.

8.  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.  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 Department of the Air Force has authorized the Korean
War Service Medal, 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.  There is sufficient evidence that confirms that the applicant was
wounded in action and as such is entitled to an award of the Purple Heart.
His records should be corrected accordingly.

2.  The evidence also confirms that the applicant is entitled to a
Distinguished Unit Citation, now known as the Presidential Unit Citation,
the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation, and the Bravery Gold
Medal of Greece.

BOARD VOTE:

___MM__  ___TO __  ___EP __  GRANT RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant
a recommendation for relief and to excuse failure to timely file.  As a
result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the
individual concerned be corrected:

      a.  by awarding him the Purple Heart; and


      b.  by showing that he is entitled to a Distinguished Unit Citation,
now known as the Presidential Unit Citation, the Republic of Korea
Presidential Unit Citation, and the Bravery Gold Medal of Greece.




            _____Melvin Meyer_____
                    CHAIRPERSON

                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR2004100913                            |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20040727                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR . . . . .                            |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |GRANT                                   |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.00                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |