RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        1 May 2007
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20060015250


      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. Nancy L. Amos                |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Paul M. Smith                 |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. David K. Haasenritter         |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Edward E. Montgomery          |     |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 award of the Purple Heart and the Combat
Infantryman Badge.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was awarded the Purple Heart
and the Combat Infantryman Badge but they are not shown on his DD Form 214
(Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States).  The
records were destroyed when the Chinese overran their position.  He has
three “bronze stars” on his DD Form 214 and a letter from a man he was in
Korea with.

3.  The applicant provides his DD Form 214 for the period ending 3
September 1952; a letter of support, dated 11 April 2004; a Headquarters,
2d Infantry Division War Diary for 29 August 1950; and two documents from
his medical records.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 18 November 1954.  The application submitted in this case
is dated 18 October 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 enlisted in the Regular Army on 27 June 1949.  Item
          5 (Specialty Number or Symbol) of his DD Form 214 for the period
ending           3 September 1952 shows his specialty as 3820 (Subsistence
Storage Specialist). Item 28 (Most Significant Duty Assignment (for
enlisted personnel, the last duty assignment)) shows his last duty
assignment as a subsistence storage specialist with Headquarters and
Headquarters Company, 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment.

5.  The applicant arrived in Korea on an unknown date.  He provided a
letter from a former member of the 38th Infantry Regiment, 2d Infantry
Division.  That individual stated the 38th Infantry Regiment arrived in
Pusan on 19 August 1950. As they were leaving the ship, they came under
fire from enemy forces.  They were told to take cover.  He ran into the
applicant in the building in which they both took cover.  They did not know
each other at the time and did not speak to each other.  Years later at the
Veterans Center they learned that they had been in the same building that
night.

6.  The applicant provided a document from his medical records that shows
he was treated on 21 January 1951 for chemosis (swelling of the tissue that
lines the eyelid) and edema of the upper right eyelid; bronchitis; and [a]
furuncle (boil) on his back with axial adenopathy (swollen lymph nodes).
The applicant indicated he received these injuries when he was blown out
the back of a truck.

7.  Office of The Surgeon General Hospital Admission Cards show the
applicant was hospitalized on 21 January 1951 for bronchitis and a furuncle
on the back, and on 17 February 1951 for a psychoneurotic
disorder/psychogenic musculoskeletal reaction.

8.  The applicant’s name is not listed on the Korean War Casualty Roster.

9.  All of the Office of The Surgeon General Hospital Admission Cards list
the applicant’s branch as Quartermaster Corps.

10.  On 3 September 1952, the applicant was honorably discharged.  His DD
Form 214 for the period ending 3 September 1952 shows he was awarded the
Meritorious Unit Commendation, the Korean Service Medal with three bronze
service stars, the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation, and the
Distinguished Unit Citation.

11.  A previous ABCMR case (not an awards issue) indicated the applicant
enlisted in the Regular Army on 3 September 1953.  On 19 August 1954, he
was convicted by a general court-martial of being absent without leave.
His sentence included a bad conduct discharge and, on 18 November 1954, he
was discharged pursuant to his conviction by court-martial.  His DD Form
214 for the period ending 19 August 1954 is not available.

12.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) states the Purple Heart is
awarded for a wound sustained as a result of hostile action.
Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify the wound was the result
of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment by a medical
officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official
record.

13.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides for award of the Combat Infantryman
Badge to a Soldier who is an infantryman satisfactorily performing infantry
duties, who is assigned to an infantry unit during such time as the unit is
engaged in active ground combat, and who actively participates in such
ground combat.  Campaign or battle credit alone is not sufficient for award
of the CIB.

14.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides for award of the United Nations
Service Medal.  In pertinent part, it states 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.

15.  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.  There is no evidence of record to show the applicant was wounded as a
result of enemy action.

2.  The applicant provided a document from his medical records that shows
he was treated on 21 January 1951 for chemosis and edema of the upper right
eyelid; for bronchitis; and for a furuncle on his back with axial
adenopathy.  He indicated he received those injuries when he was blown out
the back of a truck.  However, the document itself does not indicate how he
incurred those injuries, they do not appear to be the type of injuries
incurred as a result of hostile action, and the Office of The Surgeon
General Hospital Admission Cards do not indicate they were the result of
hostile action.

3.  Therefore, there is insufficient evidence on which to base award of the
Purple Heart.

4.  The available evidence of record indicates the applicant was in the
Quartermaster Corps and not an infantryman.  There is no evidence to show
he actively participated in ground combat as an infantryman.  Battle credit
(i.e., award of bronze service stars) alone is not sufficient for award of
the Combat Infantryman Badge.  Therefore, even if he was assigned or
attached to the 38th Infantry Regiment, there is insufficient evidence to
show he met the eligibility criteria for award of the Combat Infantryman
Badge.

5.  The applicant did meet the eligibility criteria for award of the United
Nations Service Medal and the ROK-KWSM.  These awards should be added to
his DD Form 214 for the period ending 3 September 1952.

6.  Evidence shows that the applicant’s records contain administrative
errors which do not require action by the Board.  Therefore, administrative
correction of the applicant’s records will be accomplished by the Case
Management Support Division (CMSD), St. Louis, Missouri, as outlined by the
Board in paragraph 2 of the BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION section
below.

7.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 18 November 1954; therefore, the time
for the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or
injustice expired on      17 November 1957.  Although the applicant did not
file within the 3-year statute of limitations, it would be appropriate to
waive failure to timely file based on the fact there is no statute of
limitations on requests for award of the Purple Heart.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

__pms___  __dkh___  __eem___  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  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 for correction of the
records of the individual concerned.

2.  The Board determined that administrative errors in the records of the
individual concerned should be corrected.  Therefore, the Board requests
that the CMSD-St. Louis administratively correct the records of the
individual concerned by amending his DD Form 214 for the period ending 3
September 1952 to add award of the United Nations Service Medal and the
Korean War Service Medal.




                                  ____Paul M. Smith_____
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20060015250                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20070501                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |Mr. Schwartz                            |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.0015                                |
|2.                      |107.0056                                |
|                        |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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