IN THE CASE OF: 

		BOARD DATE:	    8 January 2013

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20120011571 


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 award of the Purple Heart. 

2.  The applicant states:

	a.  on 24 June 1966, while assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC), 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry of the 25th Infantry Division he was involved in a firefight and was hit with shrapnel from a grenade.  He was hit in his face and neck and was treated by the medic assigned to his unit.  There were no entries made in his service medical records showing this injury.

	b.  in January 2012, during an examination, his doctor discovered a lump in his neck.  He performed a computed tomography (CT) scan and discovered a metal fragment that was from the grenade explosion in 1966.    

3.  The applicant provides:

* DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge)
* DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from Active Duty)
* DD Form 215 (Correction to DD Form 214)
* Diagnostic Imaging Report
* Medical report, dated 24 January 2012
* Eyewitness statement, dated 8 October 2012 


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.  The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army on 9 September 1964 for a period of 3 years.  He served as a light weapons infantryman assigned to HHC, 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry in Vietnam from 2 January 1966 to 19 December 1966.  On 13 August 1967, he was honorably discharged for immediate reenlistment.

3.  His DD Form 214 for the period ending 13 August 1967 does not show the Purple Heart as an authorized award.

4.  He reenlisted on 14 August 1967 for a period of 6 years.  On 25 September 1970, he was discharged under honorable conditions.

5.  His DD Form 214 for the period ending 25 September 1970 does not show the Purple Heart as an authorized award.

6.  There is no evidence in the available records which shows the applicant was awarded the Purple Heart or was wounded as a result of hostile action in Vietnam.

7.  His DA Form 20 does not show entitlement to the Purple Heart and item 
40 (Wounds) is blank.  His name does not appear on the Vietnam casualty roster.

8.  A 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 U.S. Army Human Resources Command Military Awards Branch, failed to reveal any orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to the applicant.

9.  He provided an eyewitness statement, dated 8 October 2012, from the medic who treated him.  The medic attests:

* He was the field medic for the 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry of the 25th Infantry Division from 7 July 1966 to 5 June 1967
* In July 1966 the applicant came to him with shrapnel wounds to his face and neck he received during a firefight
* He cleaned and dressed the wounds for about a week during the period 9-15 July 1966

10.  He also provided a diagnostic imaging report, dated 27 January 2012, which shows a metallic "BB" was located on the right neck region.  However, there is no evidence this metallic foreign body is the result of hostile action.

11.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides that 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 military medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends he was injured in Vietnam on 24 June 1966 during a firefight and he was treated for his wounds by the medic assigned to his unit.  However, the eyewitness statement from the medic provided by the applicant indicates the medic treated the applicant during the period 9-15 July 1966. 

2.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 establishes basic requirements for the Purple Heart and all other awards.  The Purple Heart requires:

* the wound was the result of hostile action
* treatment of the wound by medical personnel
* documentation of the wound in official records

3.  The diagnostic imaging report provided by the applicant that shows a metallic "BB" was located in the right neck region in 2012 was noted.  However, there is no evidence this metallic foreign body is the result of hostile action.

4.  There is no evidence in the available record that shows he was wounded as a result of hostile action in Vietnam.  In the absence of corroborating evidence showing he was injured as a result of hostile action in Vietnam, the eyewitness statement provided by the applicant is not sufficient as a basis for awarding the Purple Heart.
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)                                         AR20120011571





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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20120011571



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