RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 27 February 2007
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20060012410
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. Gerard W. Schwartz
Acting Director
Mrs. Victoria A. Donaldson
Analyst
The following members, a quorum, were present:
Mr. Ted S. Kanamine
Chairperson
Mr. Larry C. Bergquist
Member
Ms. LaVerne M. Douglas
Member
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 his previous request for award of the Purple Heart.
2. The applicant states, in effect, that while he was serving in the Republic of Vietnam, he was hit by shrapnel in his head and was medivaced to a hospital in Qui Nohn. He continued that he stayed at the hospital for three days.
3. The applicant provides a copy of a letter sent to his mother while he was serving in the Republic of Vietnam and several pages of Clinical Records in support of the application.
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 AR20050001685 on 8 September 2005.
2. The applicant submitted a letter sent to his mother while he was serving in the Republic of Vietnam and several pages of Clinical Records which were not previously reviewed by the ABCMR; therefore, it is considered new evidence and as such warrants consideration by the Board.
3. The envelope associated with the letter to the applicant's mother shows a map of the Republic of Vietnam and contains the entry "UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES - VIETNAM." In the letter, the applicant states that he would be getting his stitches out soon and asked his mother if she was notified by the Red Cross of his injuries. The applicant describes his wound to his mother as a little piece of fragment that went through his ear into his head but stopped when it hit his skull. The applicant told his mother not to worry, that they "just shot Novocain into his head and went to work."
4. The Clinical Records provided by the applicant show that he was treated at the 67th Evacuation Hospital for a fragment wound to his head on 17 January 1971.
5. The applicant's records show that he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge on 6 April 1971. The orders which awarded the applicant the Combat Infantryman Badge do not show the period for which the award was granted.
6. Item 24 (Decoration, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) of the applicant's DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) does not show award of the Purple Heart.
7. Item 40 (Wounds) of the applicant's DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) does not show any entries for wounds received. Item 41 (Awards and Decorations) does not show award of the Purple Heart.
8. There are no general orders in the applicant's records to show he was awarded the Purple Heart.
9. The applicant's name does not appear on the Vietnam Casualty Roster.
10. Army Regulation 672-5-1 (Military Awards) 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 been treated by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official records.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The applicant's contention that he is entitled to award of the Purple Heart was carefully considered and was determined to have merit.
2. The applicant's military records clearly show that he was actively involved in combat with hostile forces during his tour of duty in the Republic of Vietnam. Clinical records verify that the applicant sustained fragment wounds to his head on 17 January 1971.
3. Based on the fact that the applicant's record show that he was involved in direct ground combat with enemy forces and sustained a head wound as a result of a "fragment" it is reasonable to presume that his head injury was sustained as a result of hostile action.
BOARD VOTE:
_LMD___ __LCB___ _TSK__ _ 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 amendment of the ABCMRs decision in Docket Number AR20050001685, dated 8 September 2005. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by awarding him the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in the Republic of Vietnam on 17 January 1971.
__Ted S. Kanamine___
CHAIRPERSON
INDEX
CASE ID
AR
SUFFIX
RECON
YYYYMMDD
DATE BOARDED
YYYYMMDD
TYPE OF DISCHARGE
(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)
DATE OF DISCHARGE
YYYYMMDD
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY
AR . . . . .
DISCHARGE REASON
BOARD DECISION
(NC, GRANT , DENY, GRANT PLUS)
REVIEW AUTHORITY
ISSUES 1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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