RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:            28 MARCH 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:   AR20050006750


      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. Barbara Ellis                 |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Larry Olson                   |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Ronald Gant                   |     |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 to reflect that he
was a prisoner of war (POW) and he requests that he be awarded the Purple
Heart for his service as a POW.

2.  The applicant states that his records do not reflect his service as a
POW and he believes that every serviceman who surrendered on Bataan and
Corregidor in the Philippines deserves the award of the Purple Heart for
the forced labor, torture, starvation, abuse and other depredation suffered
during the 3 1/2 years of captivity.  He further states that little is
known of the fact that they fought the Japanese for 4 months without any
aid or supplies from the United States before they were surrendered to the
Japanese.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his report of separation (WD AGO Form
  53-55).

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error which
occurred on 25 March 1946.  The application submitted in this case is dated
29 December 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’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.  However, there
were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board
to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

4.  He was inducted in Fort Missoula, Montana, on 17 March 1941.  He
completed his training as an intermediate speed radio operator and was
transferred to the Asian-Pacific Theater of Operations on 27 October 1941.
He arrived in the Philippines on 20 November 1941 and on 9 April 1942 he
was captured by Japanese Forces and interned as a POW until his release on
16 September 1945.  Documents contained in the available records indicate
that at the time of his repatriation he was in good health.

5.  He departed for the Continental United States on 8 October 1945 on the
USS Klip Fontein and arrived at Seattle, Washington on or about 28 October
1945.

6.  On 25 March 1946, he was honorably discharged in the rank of sergeant
at Fort Lewis, Washington.  He had served 5 years and 9 days of active
service and was awarded the Distinguished Unit Badge with two bronze oak
leaf clusters, the American Defense Service Medal, the American Theater
Service Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Service Medal, the Philippine Defense
Medal with one bronze service star, the Good Conduct Medal, and the World
War II Victory Medal.  No mention of his time as a POW was entered on his
WD AGO Form 53-55 at the time of his discharge.

7.  The applicant was subsequently awarded the Bronze Star Medal (BSM) and
the POW Medal; however, there is no evidence that those awards were ever
added to his WD AGO Form 53-55.

8.  A review of the available records fail to show any indication that the
applicant was wounded/injured as a result of enemy action during World War
II (WW II).

9.  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.  This
regulation also provides that there is no statute of limitations on
requests for award of the Purple Heart.

8.  During World War II and the Korean War the Purple Heart was not awarded
to Soldiers who had been injured while in captivity or while being taken
captive.  These injuries were considered to be the result of war crimes and
not the result of a legal action of war.  War Department policy, at that
time, required that wounds must have been received in action against the
enemy or, in other words, incurred in actual combat.  Executive Order
11016, dated 25 April 1962 provided more latitude with respect to award of
the Purple Heart to prisoners of war, as well as the authority to award the
decoration to wounded Soldiers even in the absence of a formal declaration
of war.  The issue as to whether this change in policy would be implemented
retroactively to prisoners of war from World War I, World War II, and the
Korean War was considered several times.  Initially it was decided that the
change in policy would not be retroactively implemented.  It was concluded
that it would be inappropriate for the Department of Defense to
retroactively change the standards and, in effect, countermand the
decisions of the past leadership.  However, as part of the National Defense
Authorization Act (NDAA) of 1996, Congress authorized award of the Purple
Heart to any former prisoner of war who was wounded before 25 April 1962
while held as a prisoner of war, or while being taken captive, in the same
manner as a former prisoner of war who was wounded on or after that date.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant was held as a POW by Japanese Forces during the period
9 April 1942 until 16 September 1945.  Accordingly, that information should
be entered into the remarks section of his discharge documents.

2.  The applicant was subsequently awarded the POW Medal and the BSM that
also were not entered on his separation document.  Accordingly, it would be
in the interest of justice to do so at this time.

3.  However, the applicant has failed to show through the evidence
submitted with his application or the available evidence of record that he
was wounded/injured as a result of enemy forces during WW II.  Accordingly,
there appears to be no basis to award him the Purple Heart at this time.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

____BE _  ___LO  __  ___RG__  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 that he was a POW from 9 April
1942 to 16 September 1945 and that he was awarded the POW Medal and the
BSM.
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.




                            ______Barbara Ellis______
                                      CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050006750                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20060328                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |HD                                      |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |19460325                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR 615-365                              |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |DEMOB                                   |
|BOARD DECISION          |(PARTIAL GRANT)                         |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |AR 15-185                               |
|ISSUES                  |189/CORR 214                            |
|1.110.0000              |                                        |
|2.130.0000              |309/POW                                 |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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