RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:                       03 NOVEMBER 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:              AR20050001218


      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. Ronald DeNoia                 |     |Analyst              |


      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Thomas Howard                 |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. John Infante                  |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Carmen Duncan                 |     |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).

ABCMR Record of Proceedings (Cont)                       AR20050001218


THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests the award of the Purple Heart and the Medal of
Honor.

2.  The applicant states that he was wounded and captured on 10 October
1944. He also states that neither his capture nor his injury is on record;
however X-rays taken in the VA Hospital in Amarillo, Texas show he still
has shrapnel in his right leg.  The applicant further states that he was
ordered to cross enemy lines and was promised a Congressional Medal of
Honor.

3.  The applicant provides a self-authored, notarized statement; a WD AGO
Form 53-55; an Honorable Discharge Certificate; and a letter from the
Veteran's Advocate Office.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error which
occurred on 20 October 1945.  The application submitted in this case is
dated 5 January 2005.

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 was inducted into the Army on 6 December 1941.  Upon
completion of basic training and advanced individual training he was
awarded the military occupational specialty (MOS) 677 (Military Policeman).
 He served in the European Theater of Operation (ETO) during World War II
from 28 March 1944 through 31 May 1945.

4.  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.  This case is
being reviewed using documents submitted by the applicant.

5.  Item 34 (Wounds Received in Action) of the applicant's WD AGO 53-55
shows the entry "None."

6.  Item 31 (Military Qualifications) of the applicant's WD AGO 53-55 shows
the entry "Combat Infantryman Badge."

7.  Army Regulation 15-185 governs the operations of the ABCMR.  Paragraph
2-5 of this regulation states that the ABCMR will not consider an
application until an applicant has exhausted all administrative remedies to
correct the alleged error or injustice.  The applicant must submit a DA
Form 638, Recommendation for Award to the Service concerned.  The award of
the Medal of Honor exceeds the time limitations governing awards.  However,
Section 1130 of Title 10, United States Code, allows the Service concerned
to review a proposal for the award of, or upgrading of, a decoration that
is otherwise precluded from consideration by limitations established by law
or policy.  Requests for consideration of awards should be supported by
sworn affidavits, eyewitness statements, certificates and related
documents.  Corroborating evidence is best provided by commanders, leaders
and fellow soldiers who had personal knowledge of the circumstances and
events relative to the request.  The law also requires that a request of
this nature be referred to the Service Secretary from a Member of Congress.
 Since the applicant has not exhausted all administrative remedies for
award of the Medal of Honor, the ABCMR cannot take any further action at
this time.

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

9. Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze
Star Medal is awarded for heroism and for meritorious achievement or
service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The Bronze Star
Medal is authorized for each individual who was cited in orders or awarded
a certificate for exemplary conduct in ground combat between 7 December
1941 and 2 September 1945 or whose achievement or service, during that
period, was confirmed by documents executed prior to 1 July 1947.  An award
of the Combat Infantryman Badge or the Combat Medical Badge is considered
to be a citation in orders.  Therefore, the Bronze Star Medal is to be
awarded to individuals who were authorized either badge for service during
World War II.

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent
part, for award of the World War II Victory Medal.  It is awarded for
service between
7 December 1941 and 31 December 1946, both dates inclusive.

11.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, for award of the
Prisoner of War Medal.  The regulation states that the Prisoner of War
Medal was authorized on 8 November 1985 and is awarded to individuals who
in past armed conflicts were taken prisoner or held captive.

12.  Army Regulation 635-5 (Separations Document) establishes the
standardized policy for preparing and distributing discharge documents.  In
pertinent part, it directs that, in the case of prisoners of war, the unit
of assignment, country and dates of capture and release will be entered in
the “Remarks” section of the discharge document.

13.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent
part, that the Medal of Honor is awarded by the President in the name of
Congress to a person who, while a member of the Army, distinguishes himself
conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above
and beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against an enemy of
the United States.  The deed performed must have been one of personal
bravery or self-sacrifice so conspicuous as to clearly distinguish the
individual above his comrades and must have involved risk of life.
Incontestable proof of the performance of the service is required.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must
show to the satisfaction of the Board, or it must otherwise satisfactorily
appear, that the record is in error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to
submit evidence that would satisfy this requirement.

2.  There is insufficient evidence to show that the applicant met the
criteria for the award of the Purple Heart.  Available records do not show
the applicant was wounded and he has stated that the incident was not made
a matter of record; therefore, there is no basis to grant relief in this
case.

3.  Based on the award of the Combat Infantryman Badge, the applicant is
entitled to award of the Bronze Star Medal for his service in World War II
and his WD AGO Form 53-55 should be corrected to show this award.

4.  Based on a qualifying period of service the applicant is also entitled
to award of the World War II Victory Medal.  Therefore, his WD AGO Form 53-
55 should be corrected to show this award.

5.  The applicant has stated that there is no record of his capture and
there is no evidence to show he was a prisoner of war.  Therefore, there is
no basis to award the Prisoner of War Medal.
6.  Evidence shows that the applicant’s records contain administrative
error which does not require action by the Board.  Therefore,
administrative correction of the applicant’s records will be accomplished
by the Case Management Support Division (CMSD), St. Louis, Missouri, as
outlined by the Board in paragraph 2 of the BOARD
DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION section below.

7.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 20 October 1945, the date of his
separation from active duty.  However, the ABCMR was not established until
2 January 1947.  As a result, the time for the applicant to file a request
for correction of any error or injustice expired on 1 January 1950.  The
applicant did not file within the 3-year statute of limitations, however,
it is appropriate to waive failure to timely file based on the fact there
is no statute of limitations on requests for award of the Purple Heart.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

__TH ___  ___JI  ___  ____CD_  DENY APPLICATION (W/NOTE)

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  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.  The Board determined that administrative error in the records of the
individual should be corrected.  Therefore, the Board requests that the
CMSD-St. Louis administratively correct the records of the individual
concerned by awarding him the Bronze Star Medal and World War II Victory
Medal.




                                  _____Thomas Howard_______
                                            CHAIRPERSON

                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050001218                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20051103                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY-W/NOTE                             |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |AR 15-185                               |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.0015.0000                           |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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