RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:           17 February 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040001895


      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. Joseph A. Adriance            |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Thomas D. Howard              |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. John Infante                  |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Maribeth Love                 |     |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, in effect, award of the Purple Heart (PH).

2.  The applicant states, in effect, he should be awarded the PH.

3.  The applicant provides a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Service
Officer Letter, VA Letter on PH, Separation Document (WD AGO Form 53-55),
Office of the Surgeon General (OTSG) Hospital Admission Record 1944 and
National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) DA Form 1577 (Authorization for
Issuance of Awards) in support of his application.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
that occurred on 12 December 1946.  The application submitted in this case
was received 26 May 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.  The applicant’s
military records are not available to the Board.  This case is being
considered using reconstructed records, which primarily consist of the
applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 and the OTSG Hospital Admission Record for
1944.

4.  The applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he enlisted in the Regular Army
and entered active duty on 2 November 1945.  He continuously served until
being honorably separated on 12 December 1946.  The separation document
also shows he served in the Philippine Islands for 2 months and 18 days.
Item 32 (Battles and Campaigns) and Item 33 (Decorations and Awards)
contain the entry “None”.
5.   Item 34 (Wounds Received In Action) of the WD AGO Form 53-55 also
contains the entry “None”.  The applicant authenticated this document with
his signature in Item 56 (Signature of Person Being Separated).

6.  A Certification of Military Service (NA Form 13038) on file confirms
the applicant’s active duty service between 2 November 1945 and 12 December
1946 and contains a note indicating the applicant had prior service in the
Army of the United States from 9 June 1944 through 1 November 1945.

7.  The OTSG Hospital Admission Record for 1944 provided by the applicant
confirms he was admitted to a military medical treatment facility at Camp
Blanding, Florida in September 1944.  This document also shows the
applicant was treated for psychoneurosis, hysteria condition that existed
prior to his entering service and was not incurred in the line of duty.
This document further shows the disposition of the applicant was disability
discharge under section II, Army Regulation 615-360.

8.  A DA Form 1577, dated 20 July 1999, shows that the NPRC issued the
applicant the following awards at that time:  PH, Army Good Conduct Medal,
American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with 2 bronze
service stars, World War II Victory Medal and Honorable Service Lapel
Button.

9.  The applicant provides a letter from a VA, dated 2 June 2003, that
indicates that the VA confirmed the applicant’s receipt of the PH and
placed him in enrollment priority group 3.

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent
part, that the Purple Heart (PH) 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 required
medical treatment; and the medical treatment was made a matter of official
record.  Paragraph 2-8b(5) contains examples of injuries or wounds that
clearly do not qualify for award of the PH.  Included in these examples are
battle fatigue, disease not directly caused by enemy agents and post
traumatic stress disorders.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant’s claim of entitlement to the PH and the supporting
documents he provided were carefully considered.  However, by regulation,
in order to support award of the PH there must be evidence that the wound
or injury on which the award is based was received as a result of enemy
action.  The regulation specifies that illnesses that include battle
fatigue, disease not directly caused by enemy agents and post traumatic
stress disorders clearly do not qualify for award of the PH.

2.  The evidence includes a WD AGO Form 53-55 that contains an entry in
Item 34 that indicates the applicant was never wounded/injured as a result
of combat action.  The applicant authenticated this document with his
signature, thereby verifying that the information it contained, to include
the Item 34 entry, was correct at the time the document was prepared and
issued.

3.  The evidence also includes an OTSG Hospital Admission Record from 1944
that confirms the applicant was treated for a psychoneurosis, hysteria
condition that existed prior to his service and that was not incurred in
the line of duty. This clearly seems to be an illness that was not the
direct result of or caused by enemy action.

4.  The veracity of the applicant’s claim of entitlement to the PH based on
the illness that led to his disability discharge is not in question.
However, notwithstanding the issue of the PH by the NPRC, absent any
evidence that indicates this illness was the direct result of or caused by
enemy action, the regulatory burden of proof necessary to support award of
the PH has not been satisfied in this case.

5.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 12 December 1946, the date of his
discharge.  Therefore, based on the date the Board was established, 2
January 1947, the time for the applicant to file a request for correction
of any error or injustice expired on 1 January 1950.  However, he 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 file.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___MBL_  ___TDH _  ___JI____  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.




            ____Thomas D. Howard___
                    CHAIRPERSON




                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040001895                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |2005/02/17                              |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |HD                                      |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |1946/12/12                              |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR 615-360                              |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |Certificate of Disability               |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.  61   |107.0015                                |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


-----------------------
[pic]