RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        9 August 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040009898


      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:

|     |Ms. Barbara J. Ellis              |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Kenneth L. Wright             |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Patrick H. McGann, Jr.        |     |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, reconsideration of his request to be
awarded the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star Medal.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was wounded in combat and was
not awarded his medals on time.  He further states that he deserves the
medals and served his country to the best of his ability and should be
awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart.

3.  The applicant provides a statement from his former commander in support
of his application.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were
summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the
Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number
AR2003086943, on 7 August 2003.

2.  The applicant’s reconstructed records show that he was inducted into
the Army of the United States on 5 April 1951.  The applicant’s DD Form 214
(Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States) shows
that he served in Korea and was honorably discharged on 3 April 1953.  He
was discharged in the rank of private first class and transferred to the
United States Army Reserve.

3.  The applicant requested correction of his records to show award of the
Bronze Star.  There are no orders or other evidence authorizing award of
the Silver Star.  In the absence of a proper award authority for this
decoration, the applicant may request the Silver Star under the provisions
of Section 1130 of Title 10, United States Code.  The applicant has been
notified by separate correspondence of the procedures for applying for this
decoration under Section 1130 and, as a result, the Bronze Star Medal will
not be discussed further in this Record of Proceedings.

4.  During the original review of this case, the ABCMR found no evidence of
record indicating the applicant received wounds as a result of a result of
hostile action and his name was not listed on the Korean War Casualty
Roster.  As a result, the ABCMR determined that the their was no evidence
of record and the applicant did not provide any evidence that he was
wounded or treated for wounds as a result of hostile action.  Therefore,
the applicant’s request was denied.

5.  Further, the ABCMR noted that based on the applicant’s inquiry to the
National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) regarding treatment he received
while serving in Korea, personnel from NPRC conducted a review of the unit
morning reports and sick reports of the applicant’s unit for the years 1942-
1945 and 1950 through 1954.  This review produced no entries concerning the
applicant.

6.  The applicant provides a statement from his former company commander,
dated 25 August 2004.  This individual stated that the applicant was one of
his most outstanding combat Soldiers and voluntarily participated in many
fire fights while on patrol.  He further stated the applicant had informed
him after his departure from the company that he was wounded and shot in
his left calf on Sand Bag Castle.

7.  The commander also stated he enclosed a photo of the applicant in a
Korean field hospital as a result of the wound.  However, the photograph he
referenced was not attached to his statement.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part,
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.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The statement provided by the applicant’s former commander was
carefully considered.  However, this document does not confirm that the
applicant’s injury was the result of or caused by hostile action.  The
commander also stated that the applicant informed him of his injury after
his departure from the unit.  Therefore, his statement is not a first
hand eyewitness account of the action that resulted in the applicant
being wounded or injured.

2.  By regulation, in order to support award of the Purple Heart, there
must be evidence a member was wounded or injured by hostile action, was
treated by military medical personnel, and a record of the medical
treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

3.  Absent any evidence of record to corroborate the information contained
in the witness statements or to confirm the applicant’s injuries were the
direct result of or caused by enemy action, the regulatory burden of proof
necessary to support award of the Purple Heart has not been satisfied in
this case.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

__KLW  _  __PHM  _  __BJE___  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

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 to amend the decision of
the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR2003086943, dated 7 August 2003.




                                     ____Barbara J. Ellis_____
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040009898                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |2003082003                              |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050809                                |
|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.       |107.0015                                |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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