IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 21 June 2012
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20120000153
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. As a new issue, he requests award of the Air Assault Badge.
3. The applicant states:
* He participated in enough helicopter assaults and the omission of the badge was a clerical error
* He was wounded in the left hand by a bullet fragment during which one Soldier was killed and another wounded
4. The applicant did not provide any evidence.
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 AC87-06344, on 11 October 1990.
2. The applicant submits a new argument with regard to the Purple Heart that
warrants consideration by the Board.
3. The applicant was inducted into the Army of the United States on
27 September 1968. He held military occupational specialty 11C (Infantry Indirect Fire Crewman). He served in Vietnam from 24 March 1969 to 16 March 1970. He was assigned to Company B, 5th Battalion, 12th Infantry,
199th Infantry Brigade (Airmobile).
4. On 25 September 1970, he was honorably released from active duty at the expiration of his term of service. The DD Form 214 he was issued at the time does not list the Purple Heart or the Air Assault Badge as authorized awards.
5. Nothing in the following typical sources confirm he was wounded in action and/or treated for a combat injury/wound:
* Item 40 (Wounds) of his DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) does not reflect a combat wound or injury
* Item 41 (Awards and Decorations) of his DA Form 20 does not show award of the Purple Heart
* His records do not contain general orders awarding him the Purple Heart
* His name is not shown on the Vietnam casualty listing
* His medical records are not available for review with this case
6. Review of the Awards and Decorations Computer-Assisted Retrieval System (ADCARS), an index of general orders issued during the Vietnam era between 1965 and 1973 maintained by the Military Awards Branch of the United States Army Human Resources Command, failed to reveal any orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to the applicant.
7. His DA Form 20 does not show completion of the Air Assault Course.
8. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides for the following awards:
a. The Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained while in action against and 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.
b. The Air Assault Badge requires satisfactory completion of an air assault training course according to the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command standardized Air Assault Core Program of Instruction.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. With respect to the Purple Heart:
a. The criteria for the Purple Heart requires the submission of substantiating evidence to verify that the injury/wound was the result of hostile action, the injury/wound must have required medical treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.
b. The applicant's service record is void of evidence showing he was wounded or injured as a result of combat. His name is not listed on the Vietnam casualty listing and his DA Form 20 does not indicate he received a combat-related wound. Additionally, his medical records which are necessary to confirm that treatment was required are not available for review.
c. Notwithstanding the applicant's contention and his sincerity, in the absence of additional documentation that conclusively shows he was wounded or injured as a result of enemy action and treated for those wounds, there is insufficient evidence upon which to base award of the Purple Heart in this case.
2. With respect to the Air Assault Badge, there is no evidence in the applicant's records and he did not provide evidence of satisfactory completion of an air assault training course according to the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command standardized Air Assault Core Program of Instruction. Therefore, there is insufficient evidence to award him this badge.
BOARD VOTE:
________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
____x___ ____x___ ___x____ DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:
1. In regard to the Purple Heart, 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 AC87-06344, dated 11 October 1990.
2. In regard to the Air Assault Badge, 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) AR20120000153
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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20120000153
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