IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 10 July 2008
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20080005894
THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE:
1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any).
2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any).
THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:
1. The applicant requests award of the Purple Heart.
2. The applicant states he was wounded in an improvised explosive device (IED) attack. Two other Soldiers wounded in the same attack received the Purple Heart, but his was denied.
3. The applicant provides
a. Recommendation for Purple Heart submitted through command channels by his unit commander, with disapproval by the Commanding General, 42nd Infantry Division.
b. Medical documentation showing treatment for an IED shrapnel wound and concussion wound to the ear.
c. DA Forms 2823 (Sworn Statement) concerning the IED attack during which the applicant was wounded.
d. Personnel and finance records.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. The applicant was a member of the California Army National Guard (CAARNG). He served on active duty in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from 11 November 2004 through 30 November 2005 as a member of Company C, 578th Engineer Battalion, CAARNG, Redding, CA.
2. On 30 April 2005 at 1425 hours, he was struck by an IED while performing a mission in Kirkuk Province, Beiji, Iraq. He suffered slight shrapnel wounds to his right wrist and forearm, and traumatic hearing loss. He was transported to Forward Operating Base (FOB) McHenry for medical treatment.
3. The applicant's chain of command recommended he be awarded the Purple Heart. The recommendation was favorably endorsed by the applicant's unit commander and task force commander; however, the brigade commander recommended disapproval without comment. The approving authority, the Commanding General, 42nd Infantry Division, New York Army National Guard disapproved the recommendation without comment.
4. The applicant redeployed from Iraq to California on/after 30 November 2005. His DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge From Active Duty) shows he served 1 year and 20 days of active duty with service in Iraq from 5 December 2004 through 1 November 2005. He was awarded the Combat Action Badge, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal with M Device, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and the Iraq Campaign Medal.
5. On 16 March 2006, the applicant was honorably discharged from the CAARNG and as a Reserve of the Army.
6. The Purple Heart was established by General George Washington at Newburgh, New York on 7 August 1782 during the Revolutionary War. It was reestablished by the President of the United States per War Department General Orders Number 3 in 1932. It was awarded in the name of the President of the United States to any member of the Armed Forces or any civilian national of the United States who, while serving under competent authority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services after 5 April 1917, died or sustained wounds as a result of hostile action.
7. 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 by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.
a. A wound is defined as an injury to any part of the body from an outside force or agent sustained under one or more of the conditions listed above. A physical lesion is not required, however, the wound for which the award is made must have required treatment by medical personnel and records of medical treatment for wounds or injuries received in action must have been made a matter of official record.
b. When contemplating an award of this decoration, the key issue that commanders must take into consideration is the degree to which the enemy caused the injury. The fact that the proposed recipient was participating in direct or indirect combat operations is a necessary prerequisite, but is not sole justification for award. Examples of enemy-related injuries which clearly justify award of the Purple Heart are injuries caused by enemy placed mine or trap, including concussion injuries caused as a result of enemy generated explosions
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The applicant requests award of the Purple Heart.
2. The applicant was slightly wounded by an IED explosion in Kirkuk Provence, Iraq on 30 April 2005. The event was well documented, and the applicant's wounds were treated and made a matter of medical record. It is unknown why the approving authority denied the recommendation for the Purple Heart.
3. The applicant should be awarded the Purple Heart for his wound received in Iraq.
BOARD VOTE:
__xxx___ __xxx___ __xxx___ 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. 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 received in Kirkuk, Iraq on 25 April 2005, and by adding the Purple Heart to his DD Form 214 with effective date of 30 November 2005.
XXX
_ _______ ___
CHAIRPERSON
I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case.
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