RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        02 AUGUST 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040010442


      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. William Powers                |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Robert Duecaster              |     |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 records be corrected to reflect award
of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states he was wounded on 11 June 1951 and would like to
receive the Purple Heart.  He states that he received shrapnel wounds to
his left arm and leg and was hospitalized for 11 days.  He notes he never
received the Purple Heart.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his separation document.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 11 August 1952.  The application submitted in this case
is dated
10 November 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 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’s separation document indicates that he was inducted and
entered active duty on 7 November 1950 and that he served approximately 11
months overseas where he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge and the
Korean Service Medal.




5.  Files maintained by the Office of The Surgeon General, commonly
referred to as the SGO Files, confirm that the applicant was treated for
wounds to his arm and thigh, which were sustained as a result of hostile
action.  The file, however, indicates that the applicant was wounded on 8
June 1951 in Korea and not 11 June 1951 as the applicant states.

6.  The applicant was released from active duty, with an honorable
characterization of service, on 11 August 1952.  There is no indication
that he was awarded the Purple Heart and item 29 (wounds received as a
result of action with enemy forces) incorrectly reflects “None.”

7.  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 by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been
made a matter of official record.

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

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides that the National
Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service for any
period between 27 July 1950 through 27 July 1954.

10.  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.





11.  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 evidence confirms that the applicant was wounded as a result of
hostile action in Korea and as such is entitled to an award of the Purple
Heart.  Item 29 on his separation document should also be corrected
accordingly.  The date of his wound, 8 June 1951, as recorded in the SGO
Files is accepted as official evidence of the date he was wounded, vice 11
June 1951 cited by the applicant.

2.  The evidence also confirms that the applicant is entitled to the United
Nations Service Medal and the National Defense Service Medal.

BOARD VOTE:

___WP __  ___RD__  ___JM   _  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL 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;


      b.  by showing in item 29 on his separation document that he was
wounded on 8 June 1951 while in Korea, vice “None” currently shown; and


      c.  by showing that he is entitled to the United Nations Service Medal
and the National Defense Service Medal.





                            _____ William Powers_______
                                      CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040010442                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050802                                |
|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.                      |                                        |


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