RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:            24 August 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:   AR20060002349


      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. Jeanette McCants              |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Scott Faught                  |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Rowland Heflin                |     |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 he be awarded the Purple Heart with one Oak
Leaf Cluster (1OLC) for wounds received in Korea on 13 August 1950 and
3 February 1951.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was twice wounded in Korea on
13 August 1950 in Haman, Korea and on 3 February 1951 in Suwon, Korea and
should have been awarded two Purple Hearts for those wounds.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his report of separation (DD Form
214).

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error which
occurred on 7 June 1951.  The application submitted in this case is dated 2
March 2006.

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.  The applicant’s DD Form 214 shows that he was wounded in Haman, Korea
on 13 August 1950, that he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB)
on 28 August 1950.  He was promoted to the rank of master sergeant on
28 September 1950 and that he was wounded in Suwon, Korea on 3 February
1951.

5.  He was medically evacuated to Walter Reed Army Hospital for the
perforation of his tympanic membrane and injury to his eye.  He was
subsequently transferred to Indiantown Gap Military Reservation in
Annville, Pennsylvania, where he remained until he was honorably discharged
on 7 June 1951.
6.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part,
that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained while in action
against an enemy or 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.

7.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) as amended provides that the
National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is awarded for honorable active
service for any period between 27 July 1950 through 27 July 1954, 1 January
1961 through 14 August 1974, 2 August 1990 through 30 November 1995, and
11 September 2001 to a date to be determined.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides for award of the
Korean Service Medal (KSM).  In pertinent part, the regulation states that
the Korean Service Medal is awarded for qualifying service in the theater
of operations between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954.

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides for award of the
United Nations Service Medal (UNSM).  In pertinent part, the regulation
states that the period of eligibility for the United Nations Service Medal
was between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954.  The regulation provides that
this service medal was awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United
States dispatched to Korea or adjacent areas on behalf of the United
Nations.  Award of the Korean Service Medal automatically establishes
eligibility for award of the United Nations Service Medal.

10.  The Government of the Republic of Korea issued the Korean War Service
Medal (ROK-KWSM) to pay tribute to eligible Korean War veterans for their
historic endeavors to preserve the freedom of the Republic of Korea and the
free world.  The Department of Defense approved acceptance and wear of the
ROK-KWSM.  To qualify for award of the ROK-KWSM, the veteran must have
served between 25 June 1950 and 27 July 1953 and been on permanent
assignment for 30 consecutive days, or on temporary duty for 60 non-
consecutive days, within the territorial limits of Korea, in the waters
immediately adjacent thereto, or in aerial flight over Korea participating
in actual combat operations or in support of combat operations.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  While there are no records available to determine exactly when and with
what unit the applicant served with in Korea, there is sufficient evidence
to show that he was wounded twice in Korea, on 13 August 1950 and 3
February 1951, which caused him to be evacuated to the United States for
medical treatment.  Accordingly, he is entitled to be awarded two awards of
the Purple Heart (PH w/1OLC).

2.  Additionally, the applicant is also entitled to be awarded the NDSM,
the KSM, the UNSM, and the ROK-KWSM.

3.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 7 June 1951; therefore, the time for
the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or injustice
expired on 6 June 1954.  The applicant did not file within the 3-year
statute of limitations; however, based on the available (evidence or
argument), it would be in the interest of justice to excuse failure to
timely file in this case.

BOARD VOTE:

___JM __  ___SF___  ___RH __  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 two awards of
the Purple Heart (PH w/1OLC) for wounds received in Korea on 13 August 1950
and
3 February 1951, the NDSM, the KSM, the UNSM and the ROK-KWSM.




                            ____ Jeanette McCants_____
                                      CHAIRPERSON


                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20060002349                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20060824                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD)                                    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |19510109                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR (SR) 615-105-1 & AR 615-365          |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |REFRAD                                  |
|BOARD DECISION          |(GRANT PLUS)                            |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |Ar 15-185                               |
|ISSUES                  |61/ph                                   |
|1.107.0015              |                                        |
|2.107.0069              |115/ndsm                                |
|3.107.0070              |116/ksm                                 |
|4.107.0085              |131/unsm                                |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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