RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        22 March 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040001288


      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. Prevolia Harper               |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Thomas D. Howard, Jr.         |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Robert J. Osborn, II          |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. James B. Gunlicks             |     |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 correction of his military records to show award
of the Purple Heart.  The applicant also requests that his records be
corrected to show his eye color as blue instead of brown.

2.  The applicant also states that he was wounded by shrapnel while
marching behind a tank.  He continues that his tank was struck by mortar
and he was injured on his left side.

3.  The applicant further states that he was flown to Yokohama, Japan and
was hospitalized for approximately 2 months in the summer of 1950.  The
applicant continues that upon his return to Korea, he suffered from frozen
feet and was sent to Letterman Army Hospital in San Francisco, California.
The applicant states that he was discharged as a result of frozen feet.

4.  The applicant further states that he didn't think about the Purple
Heart until his son told him that he [the applicant] should receive the
award.  The applicant concluded that he is angry because it should have
been issued to him during his service in the Army.

5.  The applicant indicated that he discovered the injustice in the year
2000.  He requests that his failure to timely file be excused due to the
fact that he fought in Korea.  The applicant further states that it is in
the interest of justice that he be granted the Purple Heart because he
earned and deserves the award.

6.  The applicant also states that his records should be changed to show
his correct eye color.

7.  The applicant provides in support of his application a copy of his DD
Form 214 (Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States);
a copy of a newspaper article, dated 3 October 1950; a copy of his
discharge certificate, dated 24 August 1951; and a letter from the
Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA), dated 26 April 2004.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error which
occurred on 24 August 1951, the date of his separation from active service.
 The application submitted in this case is dated 26 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 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 service personnel records were lost or destroyed in a
fire at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973.  The records
available to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records were
provided in part by the applicant and also obtained from alternate sources.


4.  The applicant's DD Form 214 shows that he enlisted in the Army for a
period of 4 years.  He was honorably separated from active duty on 24
August 1951 after serving 4 years and 3 days of active service.

5.  The applicant's DD Form 214 does not show in item 27 (Decorations,
Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or
Authorized) award of the Purple Heart.

6.  There are no orders in the applicant's records which show that he was
awarded the Purple Heart.

7.  The applicant's name is listed on the Korean War Casualty Roster.

8.  Information from the hospital admission records of the Office of The
Surgeon General of the Army show that the applicant was admitted to an Army
Medical Treatment Facility on 19 September 1950, for treatment of a wound
of the thorax [chest].  These records also show that this wound was
classified as a " Direct result of action against or by an organized enemy
" and the causative agent was of the injury is shown as "Bullet, small
arms; Rifle."

9.  Hospital admission records also show that the applicant was admitted to
an Army Medical Treatment Facility on 5 December 1950, for treatment of
frostbite of the foot.  These records also show that the wound was
classified as " Trench foot, immersion foot, frostbite" and the causative
agent was "Heat, cold, weather and elements; exposure to cold climatic."

10.  Item 12 (Description) "Color Eyes "of the applicant's DD Form 214
contains the entry "Brown."  The DD Form 214 is authenticated in the
applicant's own hand.
11.  The applicant submitted a copy of a newspaper article titled "Mira
Loma Man Wounded in Korea" from the Daily Report, dated 3 October 1950.
This article stated that the applicant's parents received a telegram from
the War Department which stated that their son [the applicant] was wounded
in action in Korea on
19 September (no year given).  The article also stated that the applicant
had been in service for 3 years and was in Korea and Japan for 2 years.

12.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the
National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service for
any period between 27 July 1950 through 27 July 1954, 1 January 1961
through 14 August 1974, 2 August 1990 through 30 November 1995 and 11
September 2001 to a date to be determined.

13.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) 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.

14.  While award of the Purple Heart for frostbite injuries is currently
prohibited, such injuries were previously a basis for the award.  Until
1951 Army Regulation 600-45, which governed the award of Army decorations,
stated that for the purpose of considering an award of the Purple Heart, a
“wound” is defined as an injury to any part of the body from an outside
force, element, or agent sustained while in action in the fact of the armed
enemy or as a result of a hostile act of such enemy.  An “element” pertains
to weather and the award of this decoration to personnel who were severely
frostbitten while actually engaged in combat is authorized.

15.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides that the bronze oak leaf cluster is
awarded to denote the second and succeeding awards of a certain
decorations, among which is the Purple Heart.

16.  The applicant's DD Form 214 shows that he received the Korean Service
Medal which was awarded for qualifying service in the theater of operations
between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954.

17.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides for award of the United Nations
Service Medal.  In pertinent part, the regulation states that the period of
eligibility for the United Nations Service Medal was between 27 June 1950
and 27 July 1954.  The regulation provides that this service medal was
awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States dispatched to
Korea or adjacent areas on behalf of the United Nations.  Award of the
Korean Service Medal automatically establishes eligibility for award of the
United Nations Service Medal.

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

19.  The Department of Defense 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 submit 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 contends that his military records should be corrected to
show award of the Purple Heart and his correct eye color.

2.  Evidence of record shows that the applicant sustained a wound of the
thorax, and that the wound was classified as " a direct result of action
against or by an organized enemy " on 19 September 1950 while serving in
Korea.  Therefore, the applicant is entitled to correction of his records
to show award of the Purple Heart.

3.  Evidence of record also shows that the applicant was diagnosed and
treated for frostbite of the foot on 5 December 1950.  Therefore, the
applicant is entitled to the second award of the Purple Heart (correctly
known as the Purple Heart with First Oak Leaf Cluster).

4.  The applicant contends that his records should be corrected to show his
eye color as blue instead of brown.  However, the applicant authenticated
his DD Form 214 as being correct at the time of his discharge.  There is no
evidence in the available records, and the applicant has provided no
evidence, which shows that the eye color listed on his DD Form 214 is
incorrect.
5.  The applicant served a period of qualifying service for award of the
National Defense Service Medal.

6.  Based on the applicant's award of the Korean Service Medal, he is
entitled to award of the United Nations Service Medal.

7.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged errors
now under consideration on 24 August 1951; therefore, the time for the
applicant to file a request for correction of any error expired on 23
August 1954.  Although the applicant did not file within the ABCMR's
statute of limitations, it is appropriate to waive failure to timely file
based on the fact there is no statute of limitations on requests for award
of the Purple Heart.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

__tdh___  __rjo___  __jbg___  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 showing award of the
Purple Heart 1st Oak Leaf Cluster for wounds received on 19 September 1950
and for frostbite on
5 December 1950, the National Defense Service Medal, and the United Nations
Service Medal.

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
the applicant's request to change the eye color shown on his DD Form 214.



                                  Thomas D. Howard, Jr.
                            ______________________
                                      CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040001343                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050322                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          | GRANT                                  |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.0015                                |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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