BOARD DATE:	  19 November 2013

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20130005790 


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, in effect:

	a.  award of the Purple Heart;

	b.  correction of item 29 (Wounds Received as a Result of Enemy Forces) of his DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States) for the period ending 8 April 1954 to show he was wounded; and

	c.  issuance of the:

* Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp
* National Defense Service Medal
* United Nations Service Medal
* Korean Service Medal with one bronze service star
* Combat Infantryman Badge

2.  The applicant states:

* his discharge document does not show he was wounded
* he would like to have the abovementioned awards he is entitled to even though the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) letter, dated
6 March 2013, indicates he is not entitled to them
* he was shot in Korea and sent to a hospital in Japan


3.  The applicant provides:

* A self-authored letter
* WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation – Honorable Discharge) for the period ending 23 October 1947
* WD AGO Form 53 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation – Honorable Discharge) for the period ending 23 October 1947
* WD AGO Form 100 (Separation Qualification Record) for the period ending 23 October 1947
* DD Form 214
* Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Form 3-3145 (Notice of Assignment of C-Number)
* NPRC letter, dated 6 March 2013

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 requested, in effect, issuance of the Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp, National Defense Service Medal, United Nations Service Medal, Korean Service Medal with one bronze service star, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.  However, service medals and awards are not issued by the ABCMR.  The applicant is advised that requests for medal sets for previously approved awards should be forwarded to the National Personnel Records Center (Military Personnel Records), 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, MO  63138-1002.  The NPRC will verify the awards to which a retiree/veteran is entitled and forward the request with verification to the appropriate service department for issuance of the medals.  Requests to the NPRC may be submitted online through the eVetRecs system at http://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records/standard-form-180.html, or via mail or fax (314-801-9195) by letter, or completing a Standard Form 180 (Request Pertaining to Military Records), which 


is available for download at the same website.  At a minimum, all requests must include a copy of the retiree's/veteran's separation or discharge paperwork and any other supporting documentation to substantiate his request.  All requests must be signed and dated.  Therefore, this portion of the applicant's request will not be discussed further in these Proceedings.

3.  The applicant’s military records are not available to the Board for review.  A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members' records at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973.  It is believed that the applicant's records were lost or destroyed in that fire.  However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

4.  His WD AGO Form 53-55 shows that having 1 month and 4 days of prior service in the Army of the United States, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps on
18 June 1946.  He served in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater of Operations.  He was honorably discharged on 23 October 1947.  His WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was awarded or authorized the World War II Victory Medal, Marksman Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (M-1), and the Army Lapel Button.

5.  On 28 November 1951, he enlisted in the Regular Army for a period of
3 years.  He served in Korea.  He was honorably discharged on 8 April 1954 for the convenience of the Government.  He completed 2 years, 3 months, and
10 days of net active service this period with 30 days of time lost, that also included 1 year, 5 months, and 16 days of foreign service.  

6.  His DD Form 214 does not show award of the Purple Heart or that he was wounded.  It does show he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, one overseas service bar, the Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp, the National Defense Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, and the Korean Service Medal with bronze service star.

7.  There are no orders for the Purple Heart in the available records.

8.  A review of Korean casualty roster does not list the applicant as a casualty.

9.  The applicant's record contains information from the hospital admission cards created by the Office of The Surgeon General that show:

* he was hospitalized on 14 July 1953 in Korea for wounds to his thorax
* he was injured during scheduled training
* the causative agent is shown as an accident in connection with the use of his own instrumentalities of war
* his final place of treatment was Osaka Army Hospital in Japan

10.  He provides a letter from the NPRC, dated 6 March 2013, that states no record has been found to show he was authorized the Combat Infantryman Badge, Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp, National Defense Service Medal, United Nations Service Medal, Korean Service Medal with bronze service star, or Purple Heart.

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 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.  The Office of The Surgeon General files (commonly referred to as the SGO files), a health record research project, involved transposing hospital admission card data from the periods of World War II and the Korean Conflict onto magnetic tape.  In 1988, the National Research Council made these tape files available to the NPRC.  It was widely believed that these tapes would become a valuable substitute for the records lost in the NPRC fire of 1973.  The best available estimation of the completeness of this project is that it captured at least 95 percent of all combat casualty hospital admissions.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends he was wounded in Korea.

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

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

3.  Medical evidence shows he was hospitalized in Korea on 14 July 1953 for an accidental injury received during scheduled training.

4.  There is no evidence of record that shows he was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action in Korea.  There are also no orders for the Purple Heart in the available records.

5.  Regrettably, in view of the foregoing, there is an insufficient evidentiary basis for awarding the applicant the Purple Heart in this case.

6.  The NPRC informed the applicant they had no record of his being authorized the Combat Infantryman Badge, Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp, National Defense Service Medal, United Nations Service Medal, or Korean Service Medal with bronze service star.  The DD Form 214 the applicant provided with his ABCMR application is accepted as a true copy of his DD Form 214 and it shows he is authorized those awards.  The applicant may wish to     re-apply to the NPRC for issuance of these awards, providing them a copy of the DD Form 214 and this Record of Proceedings showing the ABCMR accepts that DD Form 214 as an accurate representation of his original DD Form 214.

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)                                         AR20130005790



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20130005790



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