RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:          8 November 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050002894


      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. Richard P. Nelson             |     |Analyst              |


      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Stanley Kelley                |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Ms. Diane J. Armstrong            |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Della R. Trimble              |     |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 DD Form 214 (Report of
Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States) to show: his
character of separation as Honorable instead of General; he was wounded in
the left leg instead of the right leg; and his middle name as Dorne instead
of Dorn.

2.  The applicant states that his discharge certificate indicates he
received an honorable discharge, not a general discharge.  In addition, he
feels “someone made two honest mistakes” when entering the wound he
incurred and the spelling of his middle name.

3.  The applicant provides copies of: his DD Form 214 dated 1 July 1953; an
Honorable Discharge Certificate dated 18 September 1959; his Certificate of
Birth; his Social Security Card; and his District of Columbia Driver’s
License.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error that
occurred on 1 July 1953.  The application submitted in this case is dated
13 February 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 limitation 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.  This
case is being considered using reconstructed records, which primarily
consist of the documents submitted by the applicant and copies of
information derived from the hospital admission cards of the Office of The
Surgeon General, commonly referred to as the "SGO Files.”

4.  The available records show the applicant was inducted on 19 September
1951 and served in Military Occupational Specialty 1931 (Dispatcher).  He
served in the Korean War and participated in three campaigns.  He was
wounded as a result of hostile action and was awarded the Purple Heart.
His DD Form 214 shows he incurred a penetrating shell fragmentation wound
to his lower right leg on 18 July 1952.  The applicant returned to the
United States and was separated in the rank of private-2.  His DD Form 214
shows his characterization of service as “General.”

5.  The Honorable Discharge Certificate provided by the applicant is
effective 18 September 1959, exactly 8 years after his induction.  This
document provides a history of his service and, in effect, announces the
completion of his statutory military service obligation.

6.  SGO files show the applicant incurred a penetrating shrapnel wound to
the thigh on 18 July 1952 and do not specify in which leg the applicant was
wounded.

7.  The applicant’s Social Security Card, Driver’s License, and Birth
Certificate all show his middle name as “Dorne.”  His DD Form 214 shows his
middle name as “Dorn.”

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The Honorable Discharge Certificate provided by the applicant applies
to his discharge from the US Army Reserve on 18 September 1959, not his
separation from active duty on 1 July 1953.  As such, the certificate has
no impact on his characterization of service when he was separated from
active duty.  Without the applicant’s military personnel records, it is not
possible to determine if his characterization of service upon his
separation from active duty was anything other than that shown on his DD
Form 214.  As such, there is the presumption of regularity that what the
Army did was correct.  And, since the applicant has not provided any
evidence to the contrary, he is not entitled to correction of his
characterization of service upon his separation from active duty on 1 July
1953.

2.  There is no evidence, and the applicant has not provided any evidence,
that shows he was wounded in the left leg rather the right.  Without the
applicant’s medical records, or other form of evidence, it is not possible
to determine if his DD Form 214 is in error.  Again, since there is the
presumption that what the Army did was correct, and in the absence of
evidence to the contrary, the applicant is not entitled to correction of
his DD Form 214 to show he was wounded in the left leg.

3.  It is apparent that a clerical error was made when entering the
applicant’s middle name on his DD Form 214 dated 1 July 1952.  Therefore,
he is entitled to correction of his DD Form 214 to show his middle name as
“Dorne.”


BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT RELIEF

___sk___  ___drt___  ___drt___  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 and to excuse failure to timely
file.  As a result, the Board recommends that the individual’s DD Form 214
dated 1 July 1953 be corrected to show his middle name as “Dorne.”

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
upgrading his character of service to honorable and showing he was wounded
in the left leg, rather than the right leg, as currently shown on his DD
Form 214 dated 1 July 1953.




            _________Stanley Kelley__________
                    CHAIRPERSON




                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050002894                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20051108                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR . . . . .                            |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |PARTIAL GRANT                           |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |                                        |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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