RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:            19 October 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:   AR20060014232


      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. Melinda Darby                 |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Jeffrey Redmann               |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Ronald Gant                   |     |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 father’s former request
for promotion to the rank of sergeant and further requests that the
decision to deny his awards in the previous Board decision (AR20050017935)
be reversed.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that his father, now a deceased former
service member (FSM) previously applied to the Board to receive a promotion
to the pay grade of E-5 and to have decorations awarded to him that he
should have received.  He goes on to state that the Board, in a previous
application, had granted him (the FSM) the awards he requested; however, in
his latest application, the Board denied his promotion and the awards it
had previously granted, which was an unjust action by the Board.  He goes
on to state that his father had told him that at the time, that Regular
Army personnel were being promoted but inductees were not and that he (the
FSM) was told that he would be promoted to the rank of sergeant if he
reenlisted.  However, he declined to reenlist in the Regular Army and was
separated in the pay grade of E-4.  He goes on to state that his father
earned the promotion to sergeant, that it was unjust to deny him the
promotion and contends that the FSM should be promoted retroactively to
that rank.  He also states that the awards that were previously approved
and subsequently disapproved should also be restored to his father, the
FSM.

3.  The applicant provides no additional documents with his request.

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
AR20050017935 on 1 August 2006 and Docket Number AR20050017777 on 18 July
2006.

2.  It appears that the FSM submitted two separate applications to the
Board on 18 November 2005.  In the application that was boarded on 18 July
2006, he requested to be awarded all decorations and awards to which he was
entitled and he provided supporting documents to validate his entitlement.
The Board reviewed the available reconstructed records and granted full
relief in that case and directed that he be awarded four bronze service
stars, the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation (ROKPUC), the
National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) and the Republic of Korea - Korean
War Service Medal (ROK-KWSM).

3.  It also appears that the two applications did not arrive at the same
time and as such were processed separately.  An administrative oversight
failed to determine that the FSM had an application currently pending and
his application, which was boarded on 1 August 2006 was forwarded to the
Board without records and was considered based on the evidence provided by
the FSM.  Inasmuch as that Board did not have the benefit of reviewing the
same evidence regarding the FSM’s entitlement to awards that were
previously granted, because the FSM’s records had been returned to St.
Louis to effect the directions of the Board, the second Board mistakenly
denied his request for awards that had been previously granted.

4.  Additionally, the second Board also considered his request for
retroactive promotion to the rank of sergeant (SGT) and determined that he
had failed to show through the evidence submitted that he had been unjustly
denied a promotion to the rank of sergeant.  The Board denied his request
for retroactive promotion.

5.  The evidence of record shows that the FSM was inducted on 16 July 1951,
received training as a bandsman and was transferred to Korea on 4 April
1952 for assignment to the 40th Infantry Division Band.  He was promoted to
the pay grade of E-4 (Corporal) on 23 March 1953.

6.  He departed Korea on 8 June 1953 and was transferred to Fort Ord, where
he was honorably released from active duty (REFRAD) on 30 June 1953.  He
had served 1 year, 11 months and 15 days of active service and his DD Form
214 issued at the time of his REFRAD indicates that he was awarded the
Korean Service Medal with three bronze service stars and the United Nations
Service Medal.

7.  On 27 July 1953, the 40th Infantry Division was awarded the ROKPUC for
the period covering 30 June 1952 to 27 July 1953 in Department of the Army
General Order 50-54.

8.  On 27 December 2004, the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC)
authorized the issuance of the National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) to the
FSM.  On 10 October 2004, the NPRC authorized the issuance of the GCMDL to
the FSM.  However, there is no evidence to show that those awards were ever
annotated to his records.

9.  Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1; Unit Citation and Campaign
Participation Register indicates that the Korea Summer 1953 Campaign
covered the period of 1 May to 27 July 1953.

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.

11.  Special Regulation (SR) 615-25-50, in effect at the time, served as
the authority for enlisted promotions.  It provides, in pertinent part,
that the normal method of promotion in the mobilization Army will be
temporary promotions by appropriate promotion authorities against local
military occupational specialty (MOS) and grade vacancies in their command.
 For promotions to the pay grade of E-3 or higher, individuals must have
had at least 3 months time in grade (TIG) since the last promotion.

12.  Paragraph 21 of that regulation provided the criteria for permanent
promotions in active combat theaters.  It provides, in pertinent part, that
Regular Army enlisted personnel in table of organization and equipment
(TO&E) units in active combat theaters may be permanently promoted to the
next higher permanent grade, provided the individual is in a promotable
status, has 24 months of time in permanent grade for promotion to the upper
three grades (E-5, E-6, E-7), holds a temporary grade on the same level or
higher than the permanent grade to which promotion is requested and is
recommended by his commander.  Permanent promotion accomplished in active
combat theaters will be made by the enlisting officer concurrently with the
individual’s enlistment or reenlistment for his own vacancy.  The
individual will request such promotion at the time of enlistment or
reenlistment is accomplished.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The Board has reconsidered the applicant’s request that the FSM be
promoted to the rank of sergeant retroactive to his date of separation and
finds his request to be without merit.

2.  While there were provisions for Regular Army Soldiers to be promoted to
the next higher grade upon reenlistment, those individuals had to be
qualified for such promotions.

3.   In the FSM’s case, his promotion to the rank of sergeant would have
been a temporary promotion and if there was a position vacancy available in
his unit at the time and the commander recommended him for the promotion,
the FSM would still have to meet the minimum TIG for promotion, which was 3
months.  The FSM had only 75 days TIG from the time he was promoted to the
pay grade of E-4 until the date of his REFRAD.  Although he may have been
deserving of the promotion, he was not eligible for promotion to the next
higher grade under the regulations in effect at the time.  Accordingly,
there appears to be no basis to grant the applicant’s request to promote
the FSM retroactively.

4.  However, when the Board originally reviewed the FSM’s first application
in which he requested that he be awarded all awards he was entitled to
receive, the Board had the benefit of reviewing reconstructed records and
granted his request.  Accordingly, it would be in the interest of justice
to ensure that the FSM is awarded an additional bronze service star (to
total four), and a ROK-KWSM and that his records be further corrected to
show awards of the NDSM, the GCMDL and the ROK-PUC.

5.  Accordingly, the decision of the Board on 1 August 2006 as directed in
Board Docket Number AR20050017935, as pertains to denial of award of an
additional bronze service star, the GCMDL and the ROK-PUC is no longer of
any force or effect and is superseded by this Board’s latest decision.

6.  While it is unfortunate that administrative oversights such as the
FSM’s applications occur, the mere volume of applications received by the
Board on a daily basis lend to the human failure to catch every possible
clue that an applicant may have multiple or duplicate applications before
the Board.  However, the Board accepts responsibility for the mistake and
offers its apology for the misunderstanding that has occurred in this case.

7.  It is however noted , that despite the fact that the second Board did
not have the benefit of reviewing the FSM’s records at the time it rendered
its decision, that Board came to the same conclusion as this Board and that
is that the applicant has failed to show that the FSM was eligible for and
unjustly denied a promotion he otherwise would have received had an
injustice not occurred.

8.  Therefore, the decision of the 1 August 2006 Board, as outlined in
Board Docket Number AR20050017935, which denied the FSM’s request for
retroactive promotion to the rank of SGT, remains in effect.



BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

___MD__  ___JR___  ___RG __  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to
warrant amendment of the ABCMR’s decision in Docket Number AR20050017935,
dated 1 August 2006.  As a result, the Board recommends that all Department
of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by awarding
the FSM an additional bronze service star (to total four), and a ROK-KWSM
and that his records be further corrected to show awards of the NDSM, the
GCMDL and the ROK-PUC, as outlined in Board document AR20050017777.

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
retroactive promotion to the rank of sergeant.




                                  ______Melinda Darby______
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20060014232                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20061019                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD)                                    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |19530630                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |(AR) SR 615-363-5                       |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |REFRAD                                  |
|BOARD DECISION          |(PARTIAL GRANT )                        |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |AR 15-185                               |
|ISSUES                  |46/DE                                   |
|1.107.0000              |                                        |
|2.131.0000              |310/PR                                  |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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