IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 23 September 2010
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20100011245
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 reconsideration of his earlier request for award of the Purple Heart.
2. The applicant states the service treatment record he provides is sufficient evidence to grant the award of a Purple Heart.
3. The applicant provides the following documents:
* Standard Form 600 (Chronological Record of Medical Care), dated 22 August 1967
* a copy of the definition of a punji stick from a Wikipedia website, dated 3 August 2010
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 AR20090006324 on 12 November 2009.
2. The applicant submitted a Standard Form 600 which was not previously reviewed by the ABCMR. Therefore, it is considered new evidence and as such warrants consideration by the Board.
3. His record shows he was inducted into the Army of the United States and entered active duty on 22 March 1966. He was trained in and awarded military occupational specialty 11B (Light Weapons Infantryman).
4. Item 31 (Foreign Service) of the applicant's DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) shows he served in the Republic of Vietnam (RVN) from 30 September 1966 through 29 September 1967. Item 38 (Record of Assignments) shows that during his RVN tour of duty he was assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, performing duties as a rifleman. Item 40 (Wounds) is blank. Item 41 (Awards and Decorations) lists the following authorized awards: National Defense Service Medal (NDSM), Vietnam Service Medal (VSM), Air Medal (AM), RVN Campaign Medal, two overseas service bars, Army Commendation Medal (ARCOM), and Army Good Conduct Medal (AGCM).
5. His record is void of any orders or other documents that indicate he was wounded in action or awarded the Purple Heart by proper authority. There are no medical treatment records on file that indicate he was treated for a combat-related wound or injury.
6. On 21 March 1968, he was honorably released from active duty in the rank of sergeant after completing 2 years of active military service. The DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) as amended by a DD Form 215 (Correction to DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) he was issued lists his awards in item 24 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations, and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized). It shows he earned the following awards during his active duty tenure: ARCOM, NDSM, AGCM, RVN Campaign Medal with Device (1960), Air Medal, Presidential Unit Citation, RVN Gallantry Cross with Palm Unit Citation Badge, VSM with two bronze service stars, Combat Infantryman Badge, Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar, and two overseas service bars.
7. A supplemental packet was submitted by the applicant's Member of Congress in support of his request which included a 1st Cavalry Division certificate of achievement that was issued based on the applicant's outstanding and meritorious service in connection with ground operations against a hostile force in the RVN during the period October 1966 through October 1967 and a partial unsigned Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) order that shows he was awarded the CIB on 7 December 1966.
8. His name is not shown on the Vietnam casualty roster.
9. He provides a Standard Form 600, dated 22 August 1967, which shows he reported that he was hit in his left leg with a punji stick an hour earlier. The punji stick is a type of booby trap commonly used by enemy forces in Vietnam. The medical evaluation documented and treated him for a small wound on his lower left leg from a punji stick.
10. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) contains the Army's award policy. Paragraph 2-8 contains guidance on the Purple Heart and states that in order to support award of the Purple Heart there must be evidence that the wound for which the award is being made was received as a result of enemy action, that it required treatment by military medical personnel, and a record of this treatment must have been made a matter of official record.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The applicant's contention that he was wounded in action and should be awarded the Purple Heart was carefully considered and there is sufficient evidence to support this claim.
2. The Standard Form 600 he provided shows that on 22 August 1967, while serving in the RVN, he was hit in the leg with a punji stick and was treated for a wound to his lower left leg caused by the punji stick. Punji sticks were commonly used by the Viet Cong as weapons against American Soldiers. Therefore, the medical evidence provided by the applicant is accepted as sufficient to have met the criteria for award of the Purple Heart for a wound sustained on 22 August 1967 and correction of his DD Form 214 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 is sufficient to warrant amendment of the ABCMRs decision in Docket Number AR20090006324, dated 12 November 2009. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by:
a. awarding him the Purple Heart for a wound received on 22 August 1967 in Vietnam and
b. adding the Purple Heart to item 24 of his DD Form 214.
___________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) AR20100011245
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