IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 30 June 2011
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20100029293
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 that in the interest of justice "reasonable doubt" should be applied in determining the origin of his combat injuries. He feels that his service medical record should suffice as adequate evidence of treatment received during combat. He further contends that if his injury had not been a combat injury, his service medical and personnel records would have stated that fact.
3. The applicant provides no additional documentation.
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 AR20100012023, on 26 October 2010.
2. The applicant presented a new argument concerning the use of "reasonable doubt" in determining the origin of his combat injuries. This is considered new evidence that warrants consideration by the Board.
3. The previous ABCMR Record of Proceedings (ROP) noted:
a. the applicant requested award of the Purple Heart "due to shrapnel wounds received in May 1971 while stationed in Vietnam";
b. the applicant received a minor shrapnel wound to his ear;
c. the medical record does not state the shrapnel wound was received in combat or as a result of enemy action;
d. there was no available evidence showing the shrapnel wound was the result of hostile action;
e. the applicant's DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) had no entry in Item 40 (wounds);
f. the applicant's name was not on the Vietnam casualty listing; and
g. the Awards and Decorations Computer-Assisted Retrieval system (ADCARS) does not contain any orders awarding the applicant the Purple Heart.
4. The applicant's service medical record shows that on 1 May 1971, he was treated for a "shrapnel wound right ear - frag, located in external ear canal - superficial - removed." He received follow-up treatment for a subsequent infection of this injury. The medical record makes no mention of how or under what circumstances the applicant received this injury.
5. Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides for award of the Purple Heart to a member of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services after 5 April 1917, has been wounded or killed, or who has died or may die after being wounded in any action against an enemy of the U.S. 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.
6. Army Regulation 600-200 (Enlisted Personnel Management System), in effect at the time, provided instructions for the completion of the DA Form 20. Paragraph 9-53 specified for Item 40, enter a brief description of wounds or injuries received through hostile or enemy action requiring medical treatment and/or hospitalization. The date wounded or injured was also to be entered.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The applicant requests reconsideration of his earlier request for award of the Purple Heart. He contends that if his wound had not been received in combat, his medical or personnel records would have so stated.
2. At the time, Item 40 of the DA Form 20 required a specific entry showing a brief description of wounds or injuries received through hostile or enemy action that required medical treatment and/or hospitalization. It also required an entry of the date the individual was wounded. In the applicant's case, no entry was made, indicating that he did not receive a wound as a result of enemy action. Furthermore, his name is not listed on the Vietnam casualty listing and there are no available orders awarding him the Purple Heart.
3. It is also noted that the applicant has not provided any information describing how, where, or under what specific circumstances he received shrapnel in his right ear.
4. The governing regulation clearly requires that award of the Purple Heart be based on evidence that substantiates the wound was received as a result of hostile enemy action. In this case, the evidence does not provide the circumstances under which the applicant received his injuries.
5. In view of the above, reasonable doubt is out-weighed by the available evidence of record. Therefore, 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 to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20100012023, on 26 October 2010.
_______ _ 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) AR20100029293
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