IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	    7 July 2011

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20100029389 


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 award of the Purple Heart.

2.  He states:

* the Purple Heart was awarded to him and mailed to his New Jersey home in 1967
* he was serving as an infantryman with the 9th Infantry Division in the Mekong Delta of South Vietnam on 27 February 1967
* shrapnel entered his right leg during a Viet Cong mortar attack
* 2 of his friends were killed and 10 or 11 Soldiers were wounded, including himself

3.  He provides:

* letters from a combat medic, his sister, and the National Personnel Records Center
* personal photographs
* DD Form 214
* letter addressed to his family



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.  He was inducted into the Army of the United States on 24 January 1966.

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

* he served in Vietnam from 1 December 1966 through 24 November 1967
* in item 38 (Record of Assignments) he was assigned to Company B, 5th Battalion, 60th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division from 1 December 1966 to 20 July 1967 and to Company A, 2nd Battalion, 47th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division from 21 July 1967 to 23 November 1967
* in item 40 (Wounds) no entry [blank]
* in item 41 (Awards and Decorations) no Purple Heart

4.  His service record does not contain any orders which show he was awarded the Purple Heart or medical documentation that shows he was wounded as a result of hostile action in Vietnam.  His name is not included on the Vietnam casualty roster.

5.  He was honorably released from active duty on 25 November 1967 as an overseas returnee.  Item 24 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) of his DD Form 214 does not show award of the Purple Heart.

6.  He provided a letter from a former fellow Soldier who stated he was a combat medic with Company B, 5th Battalion, 60th Infantry, 3rd Brigade, 9th Infantry Division, in the Mekong Delta of South Vietnam.  The former fellow Soldier stated that:

* shrapnel entered the applicant's lower right leg on 27 February 1967 during a mortar attack near the village of Tan Hiep and he treated the wound
* he didn't evacuate the applicant to a nearby hospital because the wound was not serious
* he continued to treat the applicant's wound for a week or so until the risk of infection passed

7.  He also provided a letter from his sister who attested:

* the applicant sent a letter to their parents informing them he had received a wound from shrapnel during a mortar attack on 27 February 1967 at the Tan Hiep airstrip
* the applicant said he would send the Purple Heart home to them
* she took possession of the Purple Heart along with other medals after their parents died
* the Purple Heart was not entered on his military records
* the applicant has been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder for the past 10 years and has been hospitalized for this disorder

8.  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.

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained as a result of hostile action.  Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify 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 applicant's service record does not contain any orders awarding him the Purple Heart or evidence to show he was wounded as a result of hostile action during his tour of duty in Vietnam.  In addition, his name is not listed on the Vietnam casualty roster.

2.  He contends the shrapnel entered his right leg during a Viet Cong mortar attack; however, his service record is void of medical documentation or other evidence that supports his claim.

3.  The letters from the former fellow Soldier and his sister are acknowledged.  However, these documents alone are insufficient as a basis to grant the 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 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)                                         AR20100029389



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20100029389



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