RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        15 February 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR2004107005


      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. Jennifer L. Prater            |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Thomas A. Pagan               |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Kenneth W. Lapin              |     |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 records to show that he was
wounded in action during his service in World War II.

2.  The applicant states that he was wounded in action and this information
is not shown on his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of
Separation).

3.  The applicant further states, in effect, that the problems with his
feet are the  result of frostbite he incurred during his military service.

4.  The applicant provides a copy of WD AGO Form 38 (Report of Physical
Examination of Enlisted Personnel Prior to Discharge, Release from Active
Duty or Retirement), a copy of a Request for Army Information, a letter
from the National Personnel Records Center, dated 29 March 2004, and a copy
of his WD AGO Form 53-55.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an error which occurred on
25 January 1946, the date of his separation from active service.  The
application submitted in this case is dated 2 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 complete military records were 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 a portion his records were lost in that fire.  However, there are
sufficient documents in the reconstructed record to allow the Board to
conduct a fair and impartial review of the case.

4.  The applicant was inducted into the Army on 27 May 1943.  He served in
the
European-African-Middle Eastern Theater of Operations from 23 July 1944 to
8 January 1946 as a member of the 334th Infantry Regiment.  He was
honorably discharged on 25 January 1946.
5.  The applicant enlisted into the Army Enlisted Reserve Corps on
26 January 1946.  He was discharged from inactive service on 31 October
1948 with an undesirable discharge.

6.  The applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55 shows in item 31 (Military
Qualification and Date) the entry "03 RIF-EXP COM INF " [Expert Rifle-
Combat Infantryman].  Item 33 (Decorations and Citations) of the
applicant's WD AGO 53-55 lists the following awards earned during his
service:  Good Conduct Medal, American Theater Service Medal, European-
African-Middle Eastern Theater Service Medal with three bronze service
stars, and the World War II Victory Medal.

7.  Item 34 of the WD AGO Form 53-55 (Wounds Received in Action) shows the
entry "NONE."

8.  The applicant's military personnel files contain hospital admission
records.  However, these records do not show that the applicant was treated
for frostbite or was wounded or treated for wounds as a result of hostile
action.

9.  The applicant's records contain a WD AGO Form 38 (Report of Physical
Examination of Enlisted Personnel Prior to Discharge, Release from Active
Duty or Retirement).  This document shows in item 11 (Significant Diseases,
Wounds and Injuries) contains the entry "Wound, penetrating, arm, right,
enemy action, shell fragment, December 1944, Luxemburg, 26th Infantry Aid
Man, Luxemburg."

10.  Item 15 of the WD AGO Form 38 (Skin) contains the entry "Scar,
traumatic, right arm."  Item 41 (In your [physician's] opinion was wound,
injury or disease incurred in the line of Duty) of the WD AGO Form 38
contains the entry "Yes."

11.  The applicant's medical records show he was hospitalized at Fort
Riley, Kansas from 29 November 1943 to 13 December 1943 for psychiatric
observation.  This applicant's clinical records for this period showed that
he was discharged from the hospital with a diagnosis of dementia praecox
[any of several psychotic disorders characterized by distortions of reality
and disturbances of thought and language and withdrawal from social
contact].

12.  The applicant's records show that on 18 April 1944, he was medically
cleared for full field duty and was considered fit for overseas assignment
by medical authorities at Fort Bragg.

13.  The applicant submitted a letter from the National Personnel Records
(NPRC) Center in St. Louis, Missouri, dated 29 March 2004, which stated
that the records needed to respond to his inquiry were located in an area
that
suffered a fire in 1973.  The applicant was further advised that a portion
of the record was recovered; however, some of the record pages recovered
from the burned area were of poor quality.

14.  The applicant's records indicate that he was wounded by enemy action
in December 1944.  However, his WD AGO Form 53-55 does not show this entry
in item 34 (Wounds).

15.  Review of the applicant's records show that he may be entitled to
additional awards and decorations which are not shown on his WD AGO Form 53-
55.

16.  Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1 (Unit Citation and Campaign
Participation Credit Register), dated 6 July 1961, shows, among other
information, credit for occupation duty during World War II.  This document
shows the unit to which the applicant was assigned, the 334th Infantry
Regiment, received credit for occupation duty in Germany after World War II

17.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Army of
Occupation Medal is awarded for service of thirty consecutive days at a
normal post of duty in a qualifying location.  Personnel at a qualifying
location as an inspector, courier, escort, temporary or detached duty are
precluded from eligibility.  For award of the Army of Occupation Medal with
Germany Clasp, qualifying service must have occurred between 9 May 1945 and
5 May 1955 and the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal must have
been awarded prior to 9 May 1945.

18.  While award of the Purple Heart for frostbite injuries is currently
prohibited, such injuries were previously a basis for the award.  Until 23
August 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
face 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.

19.  Army Regulation 600-8-22, 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 applicant contends he is entitled to correction of his records to
show that he was wounded in action during his service in World War II.  The
applicant's records show that he was injured by enemy action when he
sustained shell fragments in his right arm.  Therefore, he is entitled to
correction of his records to show he was wounded by enemy action.

2.  The applicant's medical records from World War II show that he received
wounds as a result of hostile action in December 1944.  Therefore, the
applicant is entitled to award of the Purple Heart for wounds sustained as
a result of hostile action in December 1944 while serving in Germany.

3.  The applicant contends that he suffered from frostbite during his
service in World War II.  However, there are no service medical records
which show that the applicant was diagnosed with severe frostbite or was
treated for severe frostbite sustained during ground combat.

4.  While the applicant was serving with the 334th Infantry Regiment, this
unit received occupation credit for its service in Germany.  Therefore, the
applicant is entitled to correction of his WD AGO Form 53-55 to show award
of the Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp.

5.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 25 January 1946.  However, the ABCMR
was not established until 2 January 1947.  Therefore, the time for the
applicant to file a request for correction of any error or injustice
expired on 1 January 1950.  Although the applicant did not file within the
3-year statute of limitations, the evidence in this case demonstrates that
it is in the interest of justice to excuse failure to timely file in this
case.

BOARD VOTE:

__jlp___  __tap___  __kwl___  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 by showing he was awarded the Purple
Heart for wounds sustained in December 1944 in the European Theater and the
Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp.




                                        Jennifer L. Prater
                                  ______________________
                                            CHAIRPERSON






                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR2004107005                            |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050215                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |(GRANT PLUS)                            |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.0015                                |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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