IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:  17 July 2012

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20120001384 


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:

* He does not know what happened to his Vietnam medical records to substantiate his hospitalization
* He has been visiting the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Hospital in Connecticut since 1971
* The doctor's notes on the attached VA medical record should substantiate his claim
* It states "past medical history is positive for shrapnel wound to back during the Vietnam War"

3.  The applicant provides:

* VA medical record, dated 9 March 1978
* Orthopedic examination clinical record, dated 28 April 1975
* Neurological examination clinical record, dated 13 November 1972
* A photograph

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 AR20110002654 on 28 July 2011.

2.  The applicant provides clinical records and a photograph which were not previously considered by the ABCMR.  Therefore, they are considered new evidence and as such warrant consideration by the Board.

3.  His record shows he was inducted into the Army of the United States on 13 June 1969 and he held military occupational specialty 11B (Light Weapons Infantryman).

4.  He served in Vietnam from 16 November 1969 to 13 December 1970.  He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 506th Infantry.

5.  He was honorably released from active duty on 18 December 1970 as an overseas returnee.  His DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge), as corrected by a DD Form 215 (Correction to
DD Form 214), dated 22 November 2011, does not list the Purple Heart as an authorized award.

6.  Nothing in six typical source documents shows he was wounded in action or that he was awarded the Purple Heart.

	a.  Item 40 (Wounds) of his DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) is blank (does not show a combat injury).

	b.  Item 41 (Awards and Decorations) of his DA Form 20 does not show the Purple Heart.

	c.  Review of The Adjutant General's Office, Casualty Division's Vietnam casualty listing does not list his name as a casualty.

	d.  His medical records are not available for review with this case.

	e.  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 U.S. Army Human Resources Command, failed to reveal any orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to the applicant.

	f.  His service record is void of a Western Union telegram or an official Army message notifying his next of kin of a combat injury.

7.  He submitted:

	a.  A photograph alleged to be of himself on crutches.

	b.  A VA medical record, dated 9 March 1978, that shows an entry "past medical history is positive for shrapnel wound to back during the Vietnam war and a mild degenerative osteoarthritis of the cervical spine for which he is seen in the Neurology Clinic."

	c.  Clinical Record - Orthopedic Examination, dated 28 March 1975, that shows the entry "he was evacuated to the rear where a short leg cast was put on his right lower extremity for either a crack in the bone or for a bad bruise.  He wore this for two weeks."

	d.  Clinical Record - Neurological Examination, dated 13 November 1972, that shows he had been in the neurology clinic at this hospital since June 1971.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) states the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained as a result of hostile action.  To qualify for award of the Purple Heart, 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 criteria for an award of the Purple Heart requires the submission of substantiating evidence to verify the injury/wound was the result of hostile action, the injury/wound must have required treatment by personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

2.  In this case, the applicant's name is not shown on the Vietnam casualty listing, his DA Form 20 does not show he was wounded in action, his medical records are not available for review with this case, and his service record is void of orders that show he was awarded the Purple Heart.  His record is also void of any official Army correspondence or Western Union telegrams and there is no conclusive evidence in his service personnel record that shows he was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action or treated for such wounds.

3.  The VA records he submits do not conclusively show he was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action or the source of this injury and/or whether treatment was required at the time.

4.  Notwithstanding his sincerity, in the absence of official documentary evidence to corroborate the events that led to his alleged injury, or additional documentation that conclusively shows he was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action, and treated for those wounds, there is an insufficient evidentiary 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 the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20110002654, dated 28 July 2011.



      ___________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)                                         AR20120001384



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20120001384



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