IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	       28 April 2009

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20080019529 


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, in effect, reconsideration of his application for correction of his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation - Honorable Discharge) to add that he was wounded in action which, in turn, would qualify him for award of the Purple Heart.  The applicant also requests the spelling of his first name on his WD AGO Form 53-55 be corrected to read S---a----.

2.  The applicant states he was injured/wounded in action and the word "None" should be removed.  He states that "during recreation and while in a combat zone I sustained a deviated septum - injury to my nose."  He further states that his first name is misspelled on his separation document; it should be S---a----.

3.  The applicant provides no supporting documentation on either issue.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Incorporated herein by reference are the available 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 AR20080003644 on 20 May 2008.

2.  The applicant’s military records are not available 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 to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

3.  The applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was inducted into the Army of the United States on 26 April 1943 and he entered active service on 3 May 1943. He completed training and was awarded military occupational specialty (MOS) 934 (Amphibian Truck Driver).

4.  He was honorably discharged on 19 January 1946 in the rank/grade of private first class (PFC)/E-3.  He completed 2 years, 8 months, and 21 days of creditable active military service.

5.  Item 1 (Last Name - First Name - Middle Initial) on the WD AGO Form 53-55, shows his first name as S---o----.

6.  Item 34 (Wounds Received in Action) on the WD AGO Form 53-55 shows the entry "None."

7.  Army Regulation 15-185 (ABCMR) prescribes the policies and procedures for correction of military records by the Secretary of the Army, acting through the ABCMR.  In pertinent part, it states that the ABCMR begins its consideration of each case with the presumption of administrative regularity.  The applicant has the burden of proving an error or injustice by a preponderance of the evidence.  The ABCMR will decide cases based on the evidence of record.  It is not an investigative body.

8.  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.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant was previously advised that his service records were lost in the 1973 St. Louis fire.  He has provided no new evidence that was not previously available to the Board.  

2.  There are no orders or other evidence in the applicant's available record that show he was awarded the Purple Heart.  There is also no evidence of record and the applicant did not provide any evidence to show that he was wounded or treated for wounds as a result of hostile action.  In fact, he states he was "injured/
wounded in action" and goes on to state "During recreation and while in a combat zone I sustained a deviated septum - injury to my nose."  Therefore, in the absence of evidence that the applicant was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action and treated for those wounds, there is insufficient evidence upon which to base award of the Purple Heart.

3.  Additionally, with the loss of the applicant's service records in the 1973 records center fire, there is no documentation to show what spelling of his name he served under.  

4.  The Army has an interest in maintaining the integrity of its records for historical purposes.  The data and information contained in those records should actually reflect the conditions and circumstances that existed at the time the records were created.  The applicant has failed to establish a basis for compromising the integrity of the Army's records.

5.  There is no evidence that suggests the applicant has or would suffer any injury or injustice as a result of the Army maintaining its records with the first name under which it appears he served.  While it is understandable the applicant desires to now record his correct first name in his reconstructed military records, there is not a sufficiently compelling reason for compromising the integrity of the Army’s records at this late date.

6.  The applicant is advised that a copy of this decisional document along with his application will be filed in his reconstructed Official Military Personnel File (OMPF).  This should serve to clarify any questions or confusion in regard to the difference in the first name recorded in his military record and to satisfy his desire to have his correct name documented in his OMPF.

7.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must show to the satisfaction of the Board, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would satisfy this requirement.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

____X___  ___X ___  ___X ___  DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  In regard to the Purple Heart, 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 AR20080003644, dated
20 May 2008.

2.  In regard to the applicant's new issue, the evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice in the spelling of his first name on his DD Form 214.  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.



      __________X______________
               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.

ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20080019529



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20080019529



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