IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 4 January 2013
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20120011133
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:
a. correction of his DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) to show he completed high school; and
b. award of the Purple Heart.
2. The applicant states:
* He completed high school
* His DD Form 214 does not show the Purple Heart
* He had 16 stitches in his head and fluid in the lungs
3. The applicant provides:
* High School Equivalency Certificate
* DD Form 214
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 applicants 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 applicants 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 4 April 1967 for a period of
3 years. His enlistment record shows he completed 1 year of high school and did not graduate. He served as a field artillery basic crewman in Vietnam from 13 July 1968 to 12 July 1969. On 3 April 1970, he was honorably released from active duty and transferred to the U.S. Army Reserve Control Group (Reinforcement) to complete his remaining service obligation.
3. His DD Form 214 shows he was awarded the:
* National Defense Service Medal
* Vietnam Service Medal
* Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal with Device (1960)
* Parachutist Badge
4. Item 30 (Remarks) of his DD Form 214 shows the entry "HIGH SCHOOL
(1 YEAR) GENERAL."
5. There is no evidence which shows he completed high school prior to his release from active duty on 3 April 1970.
6. He provided a High School Equivalency Certificate, dated 24 April 1970.
7. There are no orders for the Purple Heart in the available records.
8. Item 20 (Wounds) of his DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) is blank.
9. His name is not listed on the Vietnam casualty roster.
10. 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 award of the Purple Heart.
11. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained 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.
12. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents) prescribes the separation documents prepared for Soldiers upon retirement, discharge, or release from active military service or control of the Army. It establishes standardized policy for the preparation of the DD Form 214. It states that the DD Form 214 is a synopsis of the Soldier's most recent period of continuous active duty. It provides a brief, clear-cut record of active Army service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The DD Form 214 is a "snapshot in time" and is a reflection of the applicant's record of active Army service at the time of his release from active duty. Since it appears he earned the High School Equivalency Certificate after his release from active duty on 3 April 1970, there is no basis for amending his DD Form 214 to show he completed high school.
2. He contends he should have been awarded the Purple Heart for stitches to his head and fluid in his lungs.
3. Army Regulation 600-8-22 establishes basic requirements for the Purple Heart and all other awards. The Purple Heart requires:
* a wound the result of hostile action
* treatment of the wound by military medical personnel
* documentation of the wound in official records
4. There are no orders for the Purple Heart in the available records.
5. There is no evidence in the available record that shows he was wounded as a result of hostile action in Vietnam. Therefore, there is insufficient evidence on which to base award of the Purple Heart in this case.
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) AR20120011133
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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20120011133
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