RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        13 JANUARY 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR2004106808


      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:

|     |Ms. Walter Morrison               |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Ms. Eloise Prendergast            |     |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 December 1945 separation document be
corrected to show entitlement to the Purple Heart and a Bronze Star Medal
based on his World War II Combat Infantryman Badge.

2.  The applicant states he was blown from a foxhole while fighting in
France and recuperated in a Birmingham, England hospital for amnesia.  He
states that he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, however, neither
the Purple Heart, nor the Bronze Star Medal, were mentioned on his
separation from the Army.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his separation document, a copy of the
letter awarding him the Combat Infantryman Badge, and a copy of his health
care cards.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 30 December 1945.  The application submitted in this case
is dated
4 April 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 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, there
were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board
to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

4.  The applicant entered active duty on 23 January 1943 and arrived in the
European Theater of Operations in May 1944.

5.  In September 1945 the applicant was notified that he had been awarded
the Combat Infantryman Badge based on his "satisfactory performance of duty
in ground combat against the enemy" while he was a member of the 320th
Infantry.  The badge is reflected on his separation document.

6.  The applicant returned to the United States in December 1945 and on
30 December 1945 was honorable discharged as a result of demobilization.
There were no service medical records available to the Board and the
applicant provided none.  Item 34 (wounds receive in action), on the
applicant's separation document reflects "NONE."  The applicant
authenticated the accuracy of the information on the separation document by
his signature and thumbprint.

7.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze
Star Medal is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized the Combat
Infantryman Badge or the Combat Medical Badge for service during World War
II.  An award of the Bronze Star Medal based on either of these badges is
commonly referred to as a conversion award.

8.  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.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The evidence confirms that the applicant was awarded the Combat
Infantryman Badge during World War II and is therefore entitled to a Bronze
Star Medal as a conversion award.  His records should be corrected
accordingly.

2.  Unfortunately, there is no medical evidence which confirms that the
applicant was wounded as a result of hostile action and as such, there is
no basis for an award of the Purple Heart.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

___WM _  ___EP  __  ___JM __  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to
warrant a recommendation for partial 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 by awarding him the Bronze
Star Medal as a conversion award based on his World War II Combat
Infantryman Badge.

2.  The Board further determined that the evidence presented is
insufficient to warrant a portion of the requested relief.  As a result,
the Board recommends denial of so much of the application that pertains to
award of the Purple Heart.




                            _____Walter Morrison______
                                      CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR2004106808                            |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050113                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR . . . . .                            |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |PARTIAL GRANT                           |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.00                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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