IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	        7 April 2009

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20090000731 


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 the records of her deceased husband, a former service member (FSM), be corrected to show award of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states that the FSM was wounded in action during his service in Korea.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of the FSM’s DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States), dated 9 December 1951; a copy a State of West Virginia Motorboat/Vehicle Registration card, dated 15 January 2007; a copy of a Department of Veterans Affairs letter, dated 28 December 2007; and a copy of the FSM’s Certificate of Death, dated 13 April 2008.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The FSM’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 FSM’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.

2.  The FSM’s DD Form 214 shows he was inducted into the Army on 22 November 1948 and he was called from inactive duty and entered active duty in Waneta, WV, on 5 November 1950 in the rank/grade of private (PVT)/E-1.  This form also shows that at the time of his separation the FSM held military occupational specialty 1745 (Light Weapons Infantryman) and that his most significant assignment was with Company B, 501st Airborne Medical Battalion.

3.  The FSM’s DD Form 214 further shows that he completed 1 year, 1 month, and 5 days of creditable military service during this period, 10 months and 27 days of which was foreign service.  He was honorably separated and transferred to the Enlisted Reserve Corps on 9 December 1951.

4.  Item 27 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations, and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) of the FSM’s DD Form 214 shows he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Korean Service Medal with three bronze service stars, the Silver Star, and the Distinguished Unit Citation.  Item 27 does not show award of the Purple Heart.

5.  Item 29 (Wounds Received as a Result of Action with Enemy Forces) of the FSM’s DD Form 214 shows the entry "SFW knee & face 2 Sep 51" indicating that the FSM suffered a shell fragment wound to his knee and face on 2 September 1951.

6.  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, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.  

7.  A review of the FSM’s records indicates his entitlement to additional awards that are not shown on his DD Form 214.

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

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22, as amended, provides that the National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service for any period between 27 July 1950 and 27 July 1954, 1 January 1961 and 14 August 1974, 2 August 1990 and 30 November 1995, and 11 September 2001 and a date to be determined.  
10.  The Government of the Republic of Korea issued the Republic of Korea War Service Medal (ROKWSM) 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 ROKWSM.  To qualify for award of the ROKWSM, 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.  The FSM’s DD Form 214 shows he suffered a shrapnel wound on 2 September 1951 as a result of action with enemy forces; therefore, he is entitled to award of the Purple Heart and correction of his records to show this award.

2.  The FSM’s DD Form 214 shows he was awarded the Korean Service Medal; therefore, he is entitled to award of the United Nations Service Medal and correction of his records to show this award.

3.  The evidence of record shows that the FSM served a qualifying period for award of the National Defense Service Medal which is not shown on his records; therefore, he is entitled to correction of his records to show this award.

4.  The evidence of record shows that the FSM completed 1 year, 1 month, and 5 days of creditable active military service during the period covered by the DD Form 214, 10 months and 27 days of which was foreign service.  The FSM's injury on 2 September 1951, coupled with his award of the Korean Service Medal with three bronze service stars, suggests that he completed his nearly 11 months of foreign service in Korea.  Therefore, he served a qualifying period for award of the ROKWSM and is entitled to correction of his records to show this award.

BOARD VOTE:

___X____  ___X____  ___X____  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:

	a.  awarding the FSM the Purple Heart for wounds received in action on 2 September 1951 in Korea; and

	b.  adding award of the Purple Heart, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, and the ROKWSM to his DD Form 214.


															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.
ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090000731



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090000731



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