RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 29 August 2006
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20050017505
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. Edmund P. Mercanti | |Analyst |
The following members, a quorum, were present:
| |Mr. Paul M. Smith | |Chairperson |
| |Ms. LaVerne M. Douglas | |Member |
| |Mr. Ronald D. 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 reconsideration of the Army Board for Correction
of Military Records (ABCMR) denial of his request to show that his
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) rated disability for spinal disc
disorder was incurred while simulating war. He also requests
reconsideration of the Board’s denial of his request to show that this
disability was eligible for Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC).
2. The applicant states that he injured his back during a field training
exercise when he was lifting an articulator, which is a 600 pound section
of a raft. He felt a burning pain in his back when he was carrying the
articulator down a muddy hill.
3. The applicant explains his unit’s mission and how that mission is
accomplished. The applicant also explains that a field training exercise
is a war game, which is a simulation of war. The applicant adds that the
new statements he provides with his request for reconsideration will
conclusively show that he injured his back during a field training exercise
while simulating war.
4. The applicant provides statements from three unit members.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were
summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the
Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number
AR20050002005, on 13 September 2005.
2. In the first statement provided by the applicant, a former member of
his platoon states that while he didn’t see the applicant hurt himself, he
saw him carried back up the hill. At that time he was complaining of
severe pain in his lower back and numbness in his legs.
3. In a second statement provided by the applicant, a former member of his
platoon states that he was one of the people carrying the articulator with
the applicant. He witnessed the applicant gasp and fall to his knees. The
applicant then said that he had ripped something in his back, was in severe
pain, and was unable to feel his legs.
4. In a third statement provided by the applicant, a former member of his
platoon states that he was one of the people carrying the articulator with
the applicant. He witnessed the applicant go down. The applicant then
said that he had really hurt something in his back.
5. The statements provided by the applicant are new evidence and require
the ABCMR to reconsider his request.
6. The applicant was admitted to the hospital on 12 April 1983 for sharp
pain in his lower back. The applicant reported that he was “carrying a
heavy object” when the pain started. In an Emergency Care and Treatment
record it was stated that the applicant experienced low back pain when he
was “carrying heavy load.” In an Inpatient Treatment Record Cover Sheet,
Item 33, cause of injury, it was stated that while the applicant “was
lifting articulators, muscle pulled in [unreadable] 12 Apr 83.”
7. On 1 December 2004, the US Army Physical Disability Agency (USAPDA)
CRSC Branch approved the applicant for 50 percent CRSC based on his VA
rating for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The USAPDA CRSC Branch
denied the applicant’s request for CRSC for spinal disc condition which was
rated 60 percent disabling by the VA.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The applicant has now provided convincing evidence that he injured his
back while simulating war on a field training exercise.
2. However, the applicant has not submitted any documentation to show that
the spinal disc condition that the VA has rated 60 percent disabling is a
result of the injury he incurred during the field training exercise.
3. Without clear evidence that the applicant’s 60 percent VA rating for
spinal disc condition was caused by his injury on the field training
exercise, there is insufficient evidence in which to approve his request.
BOARD VOTE:
________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
___rdg __ ____pms_ ___lmd__ DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:
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 to amend the decision of
the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20050002005, dated 13 September
2005.
_________Paul M. Smith__________
CHAIRPERSON
INDEX
|CASE ID |AR20050017505 |
|SUFFIX | |
|RECON |YYYYMMDD |
|DATE BOARDED |20060829 |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR) |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE |YYYYMMDD |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY |AR . . . . . |
|DISCHARGE REASON | |
|BOARD DECISION |DENY |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY | |
|ISSUES 1. | |
|2. | |
|3. | |
|4. | |
|5. | |
|6. | |
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