IN THE CASE OF:	

		BOARD DATE:	  28 April 2009

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20090000114 


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, that he be awarded the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was wounded while he served in Iraq and the trauma record shows he received his wounds during a mortar attack.

3.  In support of his request, the applicant provides a copy of his DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), a copy of a three-page trauma record, a copy of a Wounded in Action Report, a copy of three pages of documents related to a claim he submitted to the Department of Veterans Affairs for service-connected benefits/compensation, and a cover letter of transmittal for his request prepared by the Montgomery County Veterans Service Organization.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve Delayed Enlistment/Entry Program on 2 November 2001.  On 30 January 2002, he enlisted in the Regular Army.  He successfully completed basic combat and advanced individual training and was awarded the military occupational specialty 62B (Construction Equipment Repairer).

2.  The applicant was deployed to Kuwait and served there for the period 17 February 2003 through 1 March 2004.  The applicant was again deployed to 


Iraq and served there for the period 15 November 2005 through 15 November 2006.

3.  The applicant was honorably discharged on 18 December 2007 for parenthood under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200 (Personnel Separations - Enlisted Personnel), paragraph 5-8.  On the date of the applicant's discharge, he had completed 5 years, 10 months, and 19 days of net active service.

4.  Item 13 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Citations, and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) of the applicant's DD Form 214 shows he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Army Commendation Medal (2nd Award), the Army Achievement Medal (3rd Award), the Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon (2nd Award), and the Driver and Mechanic Badge.  The Purple Heart is not listed on the applicant’s DD Form 214.

5.  There are no orders in the applicant’s service personnel records that show he was awarded the Purple Heart.

6.  The applicant submitted a Trauma Record showing he was treated for multiple fragmentation wounds which were inflicted by the enemy.  The applicant allegedly sustained a laceration to the left wrist and a contusion to the right lower leg on 28 October 2006.  The trauma is not signed by medical authority and the medical treatment facility designation was left blank.

7.  The Wounded in Action Report shows the applicant was wounded in action while he participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom.  Comments on the form state the applicant was treated in theater but was not medically evacuated.  The Wounded in Action Report has no identification markings to indicate where - whether at the unit or at a medical treatment facility - it was prepared.

8.  The VA Form 21-0781 (Statement Support of Claim for Service Connection for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)) contains the applicant's description and recollection of the events of the day on which he was wounded in action, 28 October 2006.  The applicant describes a mortar attack and injuries that were sustained by other Soldiers.  In the heat of the action the applicant also indicates he had locked his keys in his room and when directed to retrieve his equipment, he ran through and broke down the walls of his room.  He got his gear on and 


went out to help rescue any casualties.  After all the action he sat down and started to cry.  One of the medics found that he had been hit with some shrapnel and told him he was going to get his Purple Heart.  To this day, he still has not received the Purple Heart.

9.  A call was made to a staff member of the Casualty Operations Division, Human Resources Command, Alexandria, Virginia, to determine if the applicant had ever been reported as a casualty during his period of service in Iraq.  A check of casualty reports was made and no evidence was found he was ever a casualty and reported as such.

10.  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.  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.  There is no evidence the applicant was awarded the Purple Heart while he served in Iraq.

2.  To be awarded the Purple Heart, substantiating evidence must be presented to show the Soldier was wounded as a result of hostile action, the wound must have required medical treatment, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

3.  The medical evidence provided by the applicant shows he was treated for multiple fragmentation wounds which included a laceration to the left wrist and a contusion to the right lower leg.  Medical treatment records are incomplete in that the designation of the medical treatment facility where the applicant was allegedly treated is missing from the medical record as are signatures and the identification of medical personnel who provided the applicant his medical treatment.  The Wounded in Action Report the applicant provided has no identification markings to indicate where it was prepared - at the unit or at a medical treatment facility - and therefore its authenticity cannot be verified.  The report does show the applicant was wounded in action while he participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom, was treated in theater but was not medically evacuated.  The Wounded in Action Report is not corroborated by a Casualty Report that is normally prepared and submitted when a Soldier becomes a casualty and is treated for wounds in a combat zone or in a hostile fire area.


BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

____x___  ____x___  ___x____  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 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)                                         AR20090000114



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090000114



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