IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  7 October 2010

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20100012046 


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 that he be awarded the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states:

* he was shot by a sniper when he was in Opicina, Italy
* his right arm was almost severed
* he had several surgeries in Udine, Italy, before being sent to Bethesda Hospital
* he was later sent to Percy Jones General Hospital in Battle Creek, Michigan for several surgeries

3.  The applicant provides a:

* WD AGO Form 53 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation) dated 23 July 1948
* Honorable Discharge Certificate dated 23 July 1948
* WD AGO Form 100 (Separation Qualification Record)
* Medical Associates, INC. letter dated 28 August 1981
* Thank you letter from the White House
* letter to his Senator, undated
* letter from a retired Senator, dated 9 September 2009




CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice.  This provision of law also allows the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse an applicant’s failure to timely file within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so.  While it appears the applicant did not file within the time frame provided in the statute of limitations, the ABCMR has elected to conduct a substantive review of this case and, only to the extent relief, if any, is granted, has determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant’s failure to timely file.  In all other respects, there are insufficient bases to waive the statute of limitations for timely filing.

2.  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.  This case is being considered using records, which primarily consist of the documents submitted by the applicant.

3.  The formal celebration of the allies' victory in Europe during World War II was on 8 May 1945.  The applicant enlisted in the Army on 4 June 1946 and he completed training as a heavy weapons crewman.  He arrived in Italy on 18 November 1946.

4.  The applicant returned to the US and he was honorably discharged by reason of disability on 23 July 1947.  The DD Form 214 he was issued shows the following awards:

* World War II Victory Medal
* Army of Occupation Medal with Italy Clasp
* Army Lapel Button

5.  Item number 34 (Wounds Received In Action) on his WD AGO Form 53 shows "None."

6.  In the letter from Medical Associates, Inc. dated 29 August 1981, a doctor states that the applicant has service-connected disabilities from injuries incurred in the European Theater of Occupation.  According to the letter the applicant received shrapnel in his right arm in 1947 and despite tendon transplant operations of the wrist extenders which enabled him to function productively for a 


number of years, he now has loss of stability of the proximal phalax of the thumb and weakness of the dorsiflexor.  The doctor states the applicant also has arthritis in the wrist with painful ulnar flexion as a result of his injuries.

7.  His WD AGO Form 100 shows he was a patient for 15 months prior to his discharge from the Army.  However, it does not show as result of hostile action by an enemy force.

8.  In the undated letter he wrote to his Congressional Representative he asserts that he was injured while he was in the Army and he requests assistance in obtaining the Purple Heart.  On 9 September 2009, the Congressional Representative responded in a letter, by stating that his records did not indicate he was wounded but he could appeal if he had been wounded.

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) states 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.

10.  After World War II ended, a temporary boundary was established by the Allied and Yugoslav administrations in the area of Italy bounded by the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which included the Italian city of Opicina to reduce the possibility of combat between Allied and Yugoslav forces in the area.  

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant's contentions have been considered.  However, they are not substantiated by the evidence of record.

2.  Although the applicant's WD AGO Form 100 shows he was a patient for 
15 months prior to discharge from the army, his WD AGO Form 53 specifically shows "none" for wounds received in action.  Additionally, as previously stated, the formal celebration of the allies' victory in Europe during World War II was on 8 May 1945.  The applicant enlisted in the Army on 4 June 1946, which was after World War II ended.  In the absence of evidence to the contrary it must be presumed that the information shown on his WD AGO Form 53 is correct as it pertained to "Wounds Received In Action."



3.  The letter from Medical Associates Inc. was prepared years after the applicant was discharged from the Army and it is not sufficient to warrant the requested relief.  Based on the foregoing, he has not provided sufficient evidence to support award of the Purple Heart.

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)                                         AR20100012046



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20100012046



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