RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:          23 August 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040010648


      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. Jessie B. Strickland          |     |Analyst              |


      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Ms. Kathleen A. Newman            |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. William D. Powers             |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Marla J. N. Troup             |     |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 by awarding him
the Purple Heart, the Presidential Unit Citation (PUC), the Good Conduct
Medal (GCMDL), the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm (RVNGC
w/Palm) Unit Citation, the Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Honor Medal –
First Class (RVNCAHM-FC) Unit Citation and by showing his Certificate of
Achievement for meritorious service.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was wounded twice while
serving in Vietnam but only one wound was recorded in his medical records.
He goes on to state that he requested that the medic not fill out the
paperwork for a Purple Heart because he did not want to be offered a
promotion to the pay grade of E-5 again and have to take new replacements
out on night ambushes.  He continues by stating that he had only a few
months remaining in country and had a chance of making it out.  He also
states that medical personnel wanted to leave shrapnel in his wrist;
however, his wrist swelled up and later had to be removed.  He goes on to
state that he should have been awarded the GCMDL, RVNGC w/Palm Unit
Citation, the PUC, the RVNCAHM-FC Unit Citation and his Certificate of
Achievement should have been added to his report of separation (DD Form
214).

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his DD Form 214, a copy of a
Certificate of Achievement and copies of documents from his medical
records.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  He was inducted at Portland, Maine, on 14 December 1965 and was
initially transferred to Fort Dix, New Jersey for processing.  He was then
transferred to Fort Lewis, Washington, where he was assigned to Company A,
2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division, for training.

2.  The 12th Infantry Regiment was a train and retain unit, which meant
that new inductees or enlistees assigned to the unit took their basic and
advanced individual training within the unit.

3.  On 22 September 1966, the applicant departed Tacoma, Washington, on the
United States Ship (USS) Walker, a troop transport that took the applicant
and his unit to Vietnam.  The 18-day voyage took them to Okinawa first and
then to Da Nang, South Vietnam on or about 8 October 1966.  The 2nd
Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment was placed under the operational control
of the 25th Infantry Division due to their being so far away from their
parent 4th Division.
4.  On 1 December 1966, while serving as an infantry indirect fire crewman,
the applicant was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB).  On 5
February 1967, he was advanced to the pay grade of E-4.

5.  The applicant’s medical records were not available for review by the
Board.  However, the documents submitted by the applicant show that on 24
April 1967, the battalion aid station gave the applicant a consultation to
the 4th Medical Battalion for possible surgery to remove a piece of
shrapnel from the applicant’s forearm.  The consultation indicates that two
individuals opined that it should not be removed at that time and that if
the applicant was experiencing pain in the area after 2 to 3 weeks, he
should return for evaluation.

6.  The applicant returned to the battalion aid station on 3 August 1967
and again requested to have the shrapnel removed from his forearm.  He was
referred to the 4th Medical Battalion again and it was removed under local
anesthesia, with instruction to return in 2 days.  He returned 2 days later
and the wound was healing well.  He had the sutures removed on 14 August
1967.

7.  The medical documents make no mention of how the applicant received the
shrapnel in his forearm and his name is not listed on the Vietnam Casualty
Listing as being reported as a casualty.  Additionally, his record makes no
mention of his injury.

8.  On 25 July 1967, he was presented a Certificate of Achievement for
meritorious service during the period of September 1966 to September 1967.
The Certificate of Achievement was properly not annotated on his records
because there are no provisions to record awards of a Certificate of
Achievement.  They are only filed in the record.

9.  He departed Vietnam on 21 August 1967 and was transferred to Fort Hood,
Texas, where he remained until he was honorably released from active duty
(REFRAD) on 13 December 1967, due to the expiration of his term of service
(ETS).  He had served 2 years of total active service and his DD 214,
issued at the time of his REFRAD indicates that he was awarded the National
Defense Service Medal, the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, the Vietnam
Service Medal with one bronze service star, the CIB and marksmanship
badges.

10.  A review of his records shows that the applicant had excellent conduct
and efficiency ratings throughout his service and his records contain no
derogatory information that would serve to disqualify him for award of the
GCMDL.

11.  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:  (1) the wound was the result of hostile action; (2) the wound
required medical treatment; and (3) the medical treatment was made a matter
of official record.

12.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 establishes the criteria for award of the
Army Good Conduct Medal (GCMDL).  It states, in pertinent part, that the
GCMDL was established by Executive Order 8809, 28 June 1941 and was amended
by Executive Order 9323, 1943 and by Executive Order 10444, 10 April 1953
and is awarded for exemplary behavior, efficiency, and fidelity in active
Federal military service.  The regulation also states, in pertinent part,
that for first award only, upon termination of service on or after 27 June
1950, a period of service of less than 3 years but more than 1 year
qualifies for award of the GCMDL.  The regulation outlines the criteria for
award of the Good Conduct Medal (GCMDL) and provides, in pertinent part,
that the GCMDL is awarded for exemplary behavior, efficiency, and fidelity
in active Federal military service.  It is awarded on a selective basis to
each Soldier who distinguishes him or herself from among their fellow
Soldiers by their exemplary conduct, efficiency, and fidelity throughout
their service.  There is no right or entitlement to the medal until the
immediate commander has approved the award and the award has been announced
in permanent orders.  Separation transfer points will review records of
enlisted personnel being separated to determine whether they qualify for
award of the GCMDL.  Where possible, a reasonable effort will be made to
contact the unit commander prior to awarding the medal to qualified
members.

13.  Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-3 (Unit Citation and Campaign
Participation Credit Register-Vietnam Era) was published to assist
commanders and personnel officers in determining or establishing the
eligibility of individual members for campaign participation credit,
assault landing credit, and unit citation badges awarded during the Vietnam
Conflict.  Table 1 (Army Units in Numerical Order) of the pamphlet
indicates that subsequent to the applicant’s departure from Vietnam, his
unit was awarded the PUC, the RVNGC w/Palm Unit Citation and the RVNCAHM-FC
Unit Citation for the period he served with the unit.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  While the applicant has provided documents from his medical records to
show that he was diagnosed as having a piece of shrapnel in his wrist as
early as April 1967 and that it was removed on 3 August 1967, none of those
documents relate to the date or circumstances of when or how the shrapnel
got in his forearm.  Inasmuch as the wound must be documented as being the
result of enemy action and the documents do not substantiate either that
fact or the date of occurrence, the applicant has failed to show through
the evidence presented with his application or the evidence of record, that
he meets the prerequisites of the applicable regulations for award of the
Purple Heart at this time.

2.  After carefully examining the applicant’s record of service, it appears
that the applicant should have received the GCMDL for his service from 14
December 1965 to 13 December 1967.  This conclusion is based on the fact
that the record is void of any derogatory information, which would preclude
the applicant from being awarded the GCMDL, and the lack of any specific
action by the applicant’s unit commander to disqualify him from receiving
the award.

3.  The evidence suggests that the applicant not receiving the GCMDL was
likely the result of an administrative error as opposed to it being the
result of a conscious disqualification by any of the unit commanders for
which he served.  Therefore, in the interest of justice, this error should
be corrected and the applicant should receive the GCMDL at this time.

4.  Inasmuch as Certificates of Appreciation are not entered on the DD Form
214, but are simply filed in the Official Military Personnel File (OMPF),
there is no basis to add it to his DD Form 214.

5.  However, the applicant is entitled to awards of the PUC, RVNGC w/Palm
Unit Citation and the RVNCAHM-FC Unit Citation and to have them added to
his    DD Form 214.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

__kan___  __wdp___  __mjnt__  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.  As a result, the Board
recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual
concerned be corrected by awarding him the GCMDL for the period of 14
December 1965 to 13 December 1967, the PUC, the RVNGC w/Palm Unit Citation,
the RVNCAHM-FC Unit Citation and by adding them to his records at this
time.

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 and adding a Certificate of Achievement to his DD
Form 214.



                 Kathleen A. Newman
            ______________________
                    CHAIRPERSON




                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040010648                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050823                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |(PARTIAL GRANT )                        |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES                  |61/PH                                   |
|1.107.0015              |                                        |
|2.107.0031              |77/PUC                                  |
|3.107.0056              |102/GCM                                 |
|4.107.0094              |140/RVNGC                               |
|5.107.0041              |141/RVNCAHM                             |
|6.                      |                                        |


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