RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        23 November 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050003154


      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. Luis Almodova                 |     |Senior Analyst       |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. John Slone                    |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Patrick H. McGann, Jr.        |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Larry J. Olson                |     |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, in effect, to have:  a.) the correct number of
times he was wounded in action and the date he was wounded a second time,
in the Philippines, be recorded in his separation document; and b.) in
effect, to be awarded the Purple Heart, with oak leaf cluster.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was wounded in action in Cebu,
in the Philippine Islands, on 4 April 1945 and on 23 May 1945.  A record of
his being wounded in action on 4 April 1945 was not entered on his WD AGO
Form 53-55, Enlisted Record and Report of Separation – Honorable Discharge.
 He received a Purple Heart for one wound he sustained but he is entitled
to the Purple Heart, with oak leaf cluster.

3.  The applicant submitted a copy of his WD AGO Form 53-55, a copy of a
morning report for Company C, 182nd Infantry Regiment, for 24 May 1945; and
a copy of a Western Union, dated 04 45 (April 1945), under cover of a
transmittal form from the Disabled American Veterans, Corpus Christi,
Texas, in support of his request.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an error or injustice that
occurred on 31 October 1945.  The application submitted in this case is
dated 27 January 2005; however, it was not received for processing until 2
March 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 were lost or destroyed in the  National
Personnel Records Center fire of  1973.   Information  herein  was  obtained
from reconstructed records and from alternate sources.

4.  The evidence of record, the applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55, shows the
applicant was inducted into the Army of the United States on 25 February
1944
and was honorably discharge in the rank of private first class on 31
October 1945, under the provisions of Army Regulation (AR) 615-365, for the
convenience of the Government, for the purposes of immediately enlisting
in the Regular Army.

5.  A War Department Form 372A, Final Payment – Work Sheet, on file in the
applicant's reconstructed record shows he continued to served in the
Regular Army until he was honorably discharged, at Fort Bragg, North
Carolina, on 13 December 1946.  A WD AGO Form 53-55 for his Regular Army
service covering the period from 1 November 1945 through 13 December 1946
is not available for the Board's review.

6.  At the time of his reenlistment, the applicant was assigned to Company
C, 1st Battalion, 182nd Infantry Regiment, APO 716.

7.  The applicant departed from the United States en route to the Pacific
Theater of Operations (PTO) on 12 December 1944 arrived there on 26 January
1945.  The applicant's Final Payment – Work Sheet shows he returned to the
United States on 24 November 1946.

8.  The applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55, in item 34 (Wounds Received in
Action), shows he was wounded in action on 23 May 1945 at Cebu, Philippine
Islands.  No other entry is shown.

9.  Item 33, (Decorations and Citations), of the applicant's WD AGO Form 53-
55, shows he was awarded:  the Purple Heart; the Good Conduct Medal; the
Combat Infantryman Badge; the Asiatic Pacific Theater Ribbon [now known as
the Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal], with one bronze service star; and the
Philippine Liberation Ribbon, with one bronze service star.  No other
awards are shown.

10.  The Western Union sent to the applicant's mother shows the applicant
was seriously wounded in action in Cebu on 4 April 1945.  This event was
not recorded in Item 34 of the applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55.

11.  The applicant submitted a copy of a morning report for Company C,
182nd Infantry Regiment, for 24 May 1945.  This morning report has the
following entry:  "[the applicant] Dy to SLIGHTLY WOUNDED IN ACTION
Remained dy Add pay Comb Inf Badge."  This event was recorded in Item 34 of
the applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55.
12.  A health record research project, commonly referred to as the "SGO
Files", involved transposing the hospital admission card data from the
periods of World War II and the Korean conflict onto magnetic tape.  In
1988 the National Research Council made these tape files available to the
National Personnel Records Center (NPRC).  The availability of the
information to the NPRC received considerable publicity by the various
veterans' service organizations.  It was widely believed that these tapes
would become a valuable substitute for the records lost in the NPRC fire of
1973.  It is estimated that the "SGO Files" document 95 percent of all
hospitalized battle casualties from World War II and the Korean War.  The
"SGO Files Report," was reviewed for any information that the applicant was
wounded in action while he served in the PTO.  A record was found and
corroborates the information on the Western Union to his mother.  This
record shows that the applicant sustained a "wound, perforating" in the
thorax caused by an artillery shell fragment on 4 April 1945.  The "SGO
Files Report" shows that the applicant was released from treatment and was
returned to his unit for duty on 5 April 1945.

13.  Army Regulation (AR) 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.
This regulation also provides that there is no statute of limitations on
requests for award of the Purple Heart.

14.  AR 600-8-22 also 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.  This means, in effect, that the Bronze Star Medal is
to be awarded to individuals who were authorized either badge for service
during World War II.  The applicant was awarded the Combat Infantryman
Badge.

15.  AR 600-8-22 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.  The applicant is entitled to this
award and to have it added to his WD AGO Form 53-55.

16.  Department of the Army (DA) Pamphlet 672-1, Unit Citation and Campaign
Participation Credit Register, shows the applicant's unit, Company C, 182nd
Infantry Regiment, was awarded assault landing credit for its landing on
Biri Island on 26 March 1945, by War Department General Orders (WDGO) 109,
dated 1946.  WDGO 109, dated 1946, also awarded the unit assault landing
credit for its assault on Cebu Island, on the same date.

17.  AR 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, for the “arrowhead” to be
worn on the appropriate service medal to denote participation in a combat
parachute jump, helicopter assault landing, combat glider landing, or
amphibious assault landing while assigned or attached as a member of an
organized force carrying out an assigned tactical mission.  The regulation
specifies that individual assault credit is tied directly to the combat
assault credit decision for the unit to which the soldier is assigned.  The
regulation requires that the unit must be credited with a combat assault in
order for the soldiers to receive credit for a combat assault and the
soldier must physically exit the aircraft or the watercraft as appropriate.
 The regulation also specifies that the arrowhead is authorized for wear on
the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern
Campaign Medal, the Korean Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, and
the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal.

18.  The applicant's unit was awarded the Philippine Republic Presidential
Unit Citation for the period 17 October 1944 to 4 July 1945, by Department
of the Army General Orders (DAGO) 47, dated 1950.  The Philippine Republic
Presidential Unit Citation was awarded to certain units of the Armed Forces
of the United States in recognition of participation in the war against the
Japanese Empire.  The applicant was a member of the unit at the time the
unit was cited for this award.  He is entitled to this unit award and to
have it added to his WD AGO Form 53-55.  Not more than one Philippine
Republic Presidential Unit Citation will be worn by an individual and no
oak leaf cluster or other appurtenance is authorized.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The evidence shows that the applicant was wounded in action two times
while he served in World War II.  He was wounded in Cebu on 4 April and on
24 May 1945.  Only one event is recorded in Item 34 of the applicant's WD
AGO Form 53-55.  He is entitled to have the record corrected to show that
he was twice wounded in Cebu during World War II.
2.  The applicant was awarded the Purple Heart to reflect that he was
wounded in action one time.  The evidence shows that he was twice wounded
in action.  He is therefore entitled to award of the Purple Heart, with oak
leaf cluster, and to have this award added to his WD AGO Form 53-55.

3.  The applicant was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge during World
War II.  The applicant is entitled to award of the Bronze Star Medal, based
on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge, and the special provisions of the
awards regulation that considers award of the Combat Infantryman Badge a
citation in orders, and to have it added to his WD AGO Form 53-55.

4.  The applicant served in World War II during the period cited for award
of the World War II Victory Medal.  He is therefore entitled to this award
and to have it added to his WD AGO Form 53-55.

5.  The applicant served in a unit at the time it was awarded assault
landing credit for its assault on Biri Island on 26 March 1945, and on Cebu
Island, on 26 March 1945, in the Philippines.  He is therefore entitled to
award of two bronze arrowhead devices and to have them affixed to the
already-awarded Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal, with one bronze service
star, and to have them shown on his WD AGO Form 53-55.

6.  The applicant served with unit, at the time it was awarded the
Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation.  He is therefore eligible
for award of this unit citation and to have it shown on his WD AGO Form 53-
55.

BOARD VOTE:

_JS____  _PM_____  __LJO __  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:

      a.  awarding the applicant the Purple Heart, with oak leaf cluster,
or the second wound he sustained in action against the enemy on Cebu
Island, the Philippines, on 4 April 1945;

      b.  awarding the applicant the Bronze Star Medal, based on the
special provisions of the awards regulation that considers award of the
Combat Infantryman Badge a citation in orders, and adding the Bronze Star
Medal to the applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55;

      c.  awarding the applicant the World War II Victory Medal and adding
this award to his WD AGO Form 53-55;

      d.  correcting the applicant's records to show he was awarded two
bronze arrowhead devices for his participation in an amphibious assault
landing on Biri Island and on Cebu Island, on 26 March 1945, in the
Philippines; however, the applicant is advised that only one bronze
arrowhead device is authorized to be affixed to the Asiatic Pacific
Campaign Medal in accordance with the applicable regulation; and

      e.  awarding the applicant the Philippine Republic Presidential Unit
Citation and adding this unit award to his WD AGO Form 53-55.




                            _____John Slone_______
                                      CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050003154                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |2005/11/23                              |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |GRANT                                   |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.  46   |107.0000                                |
|2.   61                 |107.0015                                |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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