RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:         22 December 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050007737


      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. Yvonne Foskey                 |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Ted S. Kanamine               |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Robert L. Duecaster           |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Jeanette B. McPherson         |     |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, award of the Purple Heart (PH).

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that on 3 September 1950, while
serving in the Korean War he was trying to take a machine gun nest on the
hill when he received a wound to his left leg and left shoulder.  He states
that during the period 5 September through 28 October 1950, he was treated
and received physical therapy for this wound at several different hospitals
in Korea (Tagu, Pusan, Nagoya).  He further states that he was then
reassigned to the
8040th Station Hospital in Fukoka, Japan, and he remained there until being
discharged from the hospital on 10 January 1951.

3.  The applicant provides the following documents in support of his
application:  Separation Document (DD Form 214); Self-Authored Letter; and
Third-Party Support Statement.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
that occurred on 2 July 1952.  The application submitted in this case is
dated
12 May 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 DD Form 214 shows he entered active duty on 10 January
1949.  It also shows that during his active duty tenure, he earned the
Korean Service Medal with 4 bronze service stars, United Nations Service
Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, Bronze Star Medal, and Army Occupation
Medal with Japan Clasp.  Item 29 (Wounds Received As A Result of Action
With Enemy Forces) contains the entry “None”.

4.  The applicant's record contains an OTSG Hospital Admission Record for
1950.  This document confirms the applicant was admitted to a medical
treatment facility in Korea on 4 September 1950, and was treated for a knee
injury he received in combat action.  The OTSG report confirms the wound
was battle related and that the applicant was hospitalized for 22 days.

5.  A Clinical Record Brief (WD AGO Form 8-33) on file, dated 7 September
1950, shows the applicant was treated for an injury to his left knee that
he received in action near Tagu, Korea.

6.  During the review of this case, a member of the Board staff reviewed
the Korean War Casualty Roster.  This search revealed an entry on the
applicant that confirms he was wounded in action in Korea on 4 September
1950.

7.  The applicant provides a certified copy of a self-authored letter he
wrote to a friend in 1950.  In the letter, he indicated he received
shrapnel wounds to his leg and stomach on 5 September 1950.  He also
provides a third-party notarized statement from a Soldier who served with
him in Korea.  This individual states he saw the applicant being carried
from the battle field by medical corpsmen (Medics) after receiving a wound
to his left leg.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) prescribes Army policy,
criteria, and administrative instructions concerning individual military
awards.  Paragraph 2-8 contains the regulatory guidance pertaining to
awarding the PH.  It states, in pertinent part, that the PH is awarded to
any member of an Armed Force who is wounded or killed in action.

9.  The awards regulation defines a wound as an injury to any part of the
body from an outside force or agent sustained under conditions defined by
this regulation.  In order to support awarding a member the PH, it is
necessary to establish that the wound, for which the award is being made,
required treatment by a medical officer.  This treatment must be supported
by records of medical treatment for the wound or injury received in action,
and must have been made a matter of official record.

10.  On 20 August 1999, the Department of Defense approved acceptance and
wear of the Korean War Service Medal (KWSM) to eligible veterans of the
Korean War, or their surviving next of kin.  Responsibility for
distribution of the KWSM was given to the Department of the Air Force.  In
order to apply, the applicant should submit a copy of his DD Form 214 to
the Awards and Decorations Section, Headquarters, Air Force Personnel
Center, 550 C Street West, Suite 12, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas 78150-
4714.  Once the KWSM has been authorized by the Department of the Air
Force, the applicant may apply to this Board to add this foreign award to
his DD Form 214.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant's claim of entitlement to the PH was carefully considered
and found to have merit.  By regulation, in order to support award of the
PH, there must be evidence to show a member was wounded in action, was
treated for the wound and a record of this treatment must have been made a
matter of official record.

2.  The evidence of record includes an OTSG Hospital Admission Record that
confirms the applicant was admitted to a medical treatment facility in
Korea on
4 September 1950, and he was treated for a combat related knee injury.  The
OTSG report categorized the applicant as a battle casualty.  It also
includes a medical treatment record, dated 7 September 1950, that confirms
the applicant was treated for a knee injury he received in action near
Tagu, Korea.

3.  The applicant provided a third-party eye-witness statement from a
Soldier that served with him in Korea that confirms the applicant was
carried from the battle field after sustaining a wound to his knee during
combat action.  Finally, the applicant’s name is included on the Korean War
Casualty Roster, the official list of Korea battle casualties.  This roster
shows the applicant was wounded in action in Korea on 4 September 1950.

4.  In view of the fact of this case, the regulatory burden of proof
necessary to support award of the PH has been satisfied.  Therefore, it
would be appropriate to award the applicant the PH, and to amend Item 29 of
his separation document by deleting the current entry and replacing it with
an entry that shows he was wounded in action in Korea on 4 September 1950.


BOARD VOTE:

___TSK _  __RLD __  __JBM__  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 awarding the applicant the Purple
Heart for being wounded in action in Korea on 4 September 1950; by amending
Item 29 of his
2 July 1953 DD Form 214 by deleting the current entry and replacing it with
the entry “Wounded In Action, Korea, 4 September 1950”; and by providing
him a correction to his separation document that includes these changes.




                            _____Ted S. Kanamine_____
                                      CHAIRPERSON

                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050007737                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |2005/12/22                              |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |HD                                      |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |1952/07/02                              |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR615-360 . . . . .                     |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |Expiration Term of Service              |
|BOARD DECISION          |Grant                                   |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |Mr. Schneider                           |
|ISSUES         1.       |107                                     |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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