RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 14 June 2007
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20060017229
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.
Ms. Catherine C. Mitrano
Director
Mr. Michael J. Fowler
Analyst
The following members, a quorum, were present:
Ms. Margaret K. Patterson
Chairperson
Ms. Ronald D. Grant
Member
Ms. Rowland C. 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 reconsideration of an earlier appeal that his records show award of the Purple Heart.
2. The applicant states, in effect, that he received a wound from shrapnel to his right arm from enemy mortar fire and that he was treated in the field by a medic. He further states that the unit medic and the company commander failed to report his injury.
3. The applicant provides a witness statement from a former fellow Soldier, dated 3 April 2006.
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 AC96-07039, on
2 October 1996.
2. The former fellow Soldier's witness statement is new evidence which will be considered by the Board.
3. The applicant was inducted on 26 May 1966 and successfully completed basic training and advanced individual training. He was awarded military occupational specialty 13A (Field Artillery Basic).
4. The applicant arrived in Vietnam with B Battery, 6th Battalion, 77th Artillery on or about 3 May 1967. He departed Vietnam on or about 1 March 1968.
5. On 29 April 1968, the applicant was honorably released from active duty and transferred to the United States Army Reserve Control Group.
6. The applicant's DD Form 214 does not show he was awarded the Purple Heart.
7 Item 40 (Wounds) of the applicant's DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) is blank. Item 41 (Awards and Decorations) of the applicant's DA Form 20 does not show award of the Purple Heart.
8. There are no general orders in the applicants service personnel records that show he was awarded the Purple Heart. There also is no evidence in his service personnel records that shows that he was wounded or treated for wounds as a result of hostile action in Vietnam. The applicant's name is not listed on the Vietnam Casualty Roster.
9. The applicant's Army Medical Treatment Records are unavailable.
10. On 2 October 1996, the ABCMR denied the applicant's first request for one award of the Purple Heart in ABCMR Docket Number AC96-07039. Evidence provided in that case states that he provided a picture presumably of him which showed a head wound that he received while in Vietnam.
11. The applicant submitted an eyewitness statement from a former fellow Soldier assigned to his unit, dated 3 April 2006. The author stated, in effect, that he served in the same unit with the applicant between June 1967 and December 1967. On the day of the incident their unit was under attack by enemy mortar fire and he and the applicant were both hit. The applicant received an injury to his right arm and the author received wounds to his right leg and thigh. The author further stated that he and the applicant reported to their captain and company medic. The company medic treated them for their injuries while in the field.
12. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained as a result of hostile action. In order to support award of the Purple Heart, there must be evidence verifying the wound for which the award is being made was received as a direct result of, or caused by hostile action, the wound must have required treatment by military medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. There are no orders in the applicant's service personnel records that show he was awarded the Purple Heart. There is no evidence in the available records and the applicant has not provided evidence of record that shows his injury was a result of hostile action.
2. It is acknowledged that the former fellow Soldier confirms his being with the applicant on the day he was wounded by shrapnel to his right arm. However, the applicant provided a picture in his previous case presumably of him which showed a head wound that he received while in Vietnam.
3. The applicant's commander at the time of the incident must have been aware of the incident as well of the severity of the applicant's injury and medical treatment. The commander did not find it appropriate at that time to recommend the applicant for award of the Purple Heart.
4. In the absence of military records which show the applicant was injured as a result of hostile action, there is an insufficient basis for award of the Purple Heart in this case.
BOARD VOTE:
________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
__MKP _ __RDG__ ___RCH_ 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 AC96-07039, dated 2 October 1996.
__ Margaret K. Patterson __
CHAIRPERSON
INDEX
CASE ID
AR20060017229
SUFFIX
RECON
AC96-07039
DATE BOARDED
14 JUNE 2007
TYPE OF DISCHARGE
DATE OF DISCHARGE
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY
DISCHARGE REASON
BOARD DECISION
DENY
REVIEW AUTHORITY
MS. MITRANO
ISSUES 1.
107.0015.0000
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6.
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