IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  21 December 2010

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20100017032 


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 correction of his DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) to show he was awarded the Purple Heart and the Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar for the M-14 and M-16 rifles.

2.  The applicant states he received "expert medals" for all weapons, he shot the highest scored in his battalion, and he was issued a trophy for his training cycle.  He states the battalion headquarters has a trophy with his name on it, proving his claim to be accurate.  He also states he did not receive a Purple Heart for multiple wounds he received while under fire in Vietnam.

3.  The applicant provides no documentation in support of his request.

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 enlisted in the Regular Army on 28 September 1967 for a period of 3 years.  He was honorably released from active duty on 8 October 1970 by reason of overseas returnee after completing 2 years, 11 months, and 27 days of total active service.

3.  Item 24 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) of his DD Form 214 shows, among other awards, the Marksman Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (M-14) and the Sharpshooter Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (M-16).  Item 24 does not show the Purple Heart. 

4.  His DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) shows:

	a.  in item 29 (Qualification in Arms) he qualified as a marksman with the
M-14 rifle on 22 October 1969 and he qualified as a sharpshooter with the M-16 rifle on 29 January 1968;

	b.  in item 31 (Foreign Service) he was assigned for duty in Vietnam from 1 March 1968 through 27 February 1969, and

	c.  in item 40 (Wounds) a blank entry.

5.  Special Orders Number 29, issued by Headquarters, U.S. Army Training Center, Fort Leonard Wood, MO, dated 29 January 1968, awarded the applicant the Sharpshooter Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar for qualifying with the M-16 rifle on the same date.

6.  Special Orders Number 244, issued by Headquarters, 15th Artillery Group, Fort Bliss, TX, dated 22 October 1969, awarded the applicant the Marksman Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar for qualifying with the M-14 rifle on 15 October 1969.

7.  The record is void of documentation showing the applicant was awarded the Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge or the Purple Heart.

8.  The applicant's service medical records are not available for review.

9.  The applicant's name does not appear on the Vietnam casualty roster.

10.  A review of the Awards and Decorations Computer-Assisted Retrieval System, an index of general orders issued during the Vietnam era between 1965 and 1973 maintained by the Military Awards Branch of the U.S. Army Human Resources Command, failed to reveal orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to the applicant.

11.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) sets forth requirements for award of basic marksmanship qualification badges.  The qualification badge is awarded to indicate the degree - Expert, Sharpshooter, and Marksman - in which an individual has qualified in a prescribed record course.  An appropriate bar is furnished to denote each weapon with which the individual has qualified.  

12.  Award of marksmanship badges is not permanent.  An award for previous marksmanship weapons qualification is revoked automatically whenever an individual, upon completion of firing a record course for which the previous award was made, has not attained the same qualification.  In the event a badge is authorized for firing a limited or sub-caliber course, it is automatically revoked if a record service course is subsequently fired.

13.  Army Regulation 600-200 (Enlisted Personnel Management System), chapter 9, in effect at the time, stated entries would be made in item 29 of the DA Form 20 to reflect each weapon fired and the most recent completion of qualification and familiarization firing.

14.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 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.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The record shows the applicant's most recent marksmanship qualifications were marksman with the M-14 rifle and sharpshooter with the M-16 rifle.  The appropriate badges are entered on his DD Form 214.  Although he may have qualified as an expert on some earlier occasion during his Army service, the governing regulations specify the record will show the most recent qualification.  Therefore, in the absence of any corroborating evidence to show he qualified as an "expert" with the M-14 and M-16 rifles subsequent to the dates annotated in his records, his DD Form 214 showing his weapons qualifications is correct.


2.  Other than his own statement, there is no evidence showing the applicant was wounded as a result of hostile action.  In the absence of official documentation showing he was wounded as a result of hostile action and received medical treatment for his wound, there is no basis for award of the Purple Heart.

3.  In view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's requested relief.

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)                                         AR20100017032



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20100017032



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