IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  25 February 2010

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20090016492 


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, through his Member of Congress, reconsideration of his earlier request for award of the Purple Heart for a combat injury in the Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO) during World War II (WWII). 

2.  The applicant states that the paperwork was not completed during his discharge at Fort Devens, MA, to award him the Purple Heart and that he has waited 65 years to be recognized for his injury. 

3.  The applicant provides, through his Member of Congress, a copy of his previously submitted WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation) and a copy of his previously submitted Honorable Discharge Certificate, dated 23 January 1946; copies of various photographs of himself in uniform, on crutches, with friends, and with a weapon; a copy of his unit's (Battery C, 369th Field Artillery Battalion) Daily Sick Report for the period 9 June through 12 August 1944; information from a hospital admission card created by the Office of the Surgeon General (OTSG), on 30 January 2003; copies of the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) Examination and Pension Reports, dated
9 May and 25 April 2002; a letter, dated 24 May 2007, from his attending physician; medical progress notes, dated 12 September 2003; a letter, dated 
3 November 2003, from the U.S. Army Human Resources Command (USAHRC), Alexandria, VA, to the applicant's Member of Congress; and several letters from the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) that were written to the applicant's Member of Congress.   


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 AR20050005910, on 26 January 2006.

2.  The applicant submitted copies of various photographs of himself in uniform, on crutches, with friends, and with a weapon; a copy of his unit's Daily Sick Report for the period 9 June through 12 August 1944; copies of DVA Examination and Pension Reports; a letter from his attending physician; copies of his medical progress notes, a letter from USAHRC-Alexandria to his Member of Congress; and copies of several letters from the NPRC to his Member of Congress, which were not previously reviewed by the ABCMR; therefore, they are considered new evidence and as such warrant consideration by the Board.

3.  The applicant’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 applicant’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.

4.  The applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was inducted into the Army of the United States and entered active service in Providence, RI, on 10 November 1942.  This form also shows at the time of separation, the applicant held military occupational specialty 605 (Heavy Machine-Gunner) and he was assigned to Battery C, 369th Field Artillery Battalion.  

5.  The applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he departed the Continental United States (CONUS) on 29 April 1944 and arrived in the PTO on 5 May 1944. He departed the PTO on 20 July 1945 and arrived back in CONUS on 21 July 1945.  He completed 1 year, 11 months, and 7 days of continental service and 1 year, 2 months, and 23 days of foreign service.  He was honorably separated on 23 January 1946.

6.  Item 31 (Military Qualifications and Date) of the applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was awarded the Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (Carbine) and the Motor Vehicle Driver Award.

7.  Item 32 (Battles and Campaigns) of the applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 shows the entry "None," indicating that he did not participate in any campaigns during WWII.
8.  Item 33 (Decorations and Citations) of the applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was awarded the Good Conduct Medal, the American Theater Campaign Ribbon, and the Asiatic-Pacific Theater Ribbon.  Item 33 does not show award of the Purple Heart.

9.  Item 34 (Wounds Received in Action) of the applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 contains the entry "None."

10.  The applicant's hospital admission card created by OTSG on 30 January 2003 shows he suffered a non-battle injury, on 25 June 1944, in the form of a compound fracture to his second metatarsal bone caused by a bullet from a rifle. 

11.  The applicant submitted the following documentary evidence in support of his request:

	a.  Several photographs, dating back to WWII, of himself in uniform, on crutches, with his comrades and with a weapon. 

	b.  Battery C, 369th Field Artillery Battalion's Daily Sick Reports for the period 9 June through 12 August 1944 show he was reported in a sick status on various dates between June and August 1944. It also show that he was admitted to the 156th Station Hospital on Kauai, HI, for treatment.  

	c.  DVA medical reports dated 9 May and 22 April 2002 describe the applicant as having been shot in the left foot during WWII and that he was sent to a field hospital for treatment where he was put in a cast for about a month.  He then took the first cast off and had a second cast for another month.  The physicians then took the ball out of his foot and constructed a shoe to straighten out his foot. He was transferred to a general hospital for a few months and was ultimately sent back to Schofield Barracks, HI, and was assigned light duty. 

	d.  A statement, dated 24 May 2007, from his attending physician states the applicant told him during the Bataan Death March he was shot four times by a sniper and he was hit in his left foot.  The physician adds that he examined the applicant and determined the scar and the planter and dorsal were consistent with a high velocity puncture wound where the applicant said he was shot.  

	e.  DVA medical records, dated on various dates in 2008 and 2009 essentially confirm the applicant sustained a foot injury.  

	f.  The letter, dated 3 November 2003, from USAHRC-Alexandria, to the applicant's Member of Congress states that an award of the Purple Heart cannot be authorized based solely on the DVA granting service-connected disability compensation.  

12.  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.

13.  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.  Additionally, this regulation provides, in pertinent part, for award of the Purple Heart to individuals wounded or killed as a result of “friendly fire” in the “heat of battle” as long as the “friendly” projectile or agent was released with the full intent of inflicting damage or destroying enemy troops or equipment.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant’s contends he should be awarded the Purple Heart.

2.  The Purple Heart differs from all other decorations in that an individual is not "recommended" for the decoration; rather he or she is entitled to it upon meeting specific criteria.  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 the sole justification for the award.  

3.  The evidence of record shows the applicant sustained a non-battle gunshot wound to his foot on 25 June 1944.  He was then treated at a field hospital and was ultimately evacuated to Schofield Barracks for further treatment and/or light duty.  The DVA awarded service-connected disability based on this injury.

4.  The criteria for an award of the Purple Heart requires the submission of substantiating evidence to verify that the injury/wound was the result of hostile action, the injury/wound must have required treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.  In this case, the applicant suffered a non-battle injury and was later awarded a DVA service-connected disability compensation, neither of which meets the criteria for award of the Purple Heart.   

5.  Notwithstanding the applicant's sincerity, in the absence of additional documentation that conclusively shows he 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 in this case.

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 to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20050005910, dated 26 January 2006.




      __________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)                                         AR20090016492



3


ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


1

ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090016492



5


ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


1