BOARD DATE:	  31 December 2013

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20130006755 


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 he was never awarded the Purple Heart for wounds he received on 27 July 1971 while in combat in the Republic of Vietnam while serving with Company C, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry.  

	a.  He was Sergeant First Class (SFC) S________'s radio operator and was walking behind him when SFC S________ stepped on an explosive device.  He remembers flying though the air.  It was very dusty, there was a lot of confusion, and he couldn't hear anything.  After a time his hearing started coming back but not all of it.

	b.  He was shocked and devastated when he learned that SFC S________ was lost.  He had shrapnel pieces around his face, eyes, arms, and legs.  He was treated by their medic and shrapnel was later removed by doctors in the rear.

	c.  His company did not carry any paper medical records and he didn't think his wounds were correctly, if at all, entered in his medical records because his company was in combat locations for months at a time.  The medical records were located back at Camp Evans.

	d.  His wounds were treated by his platoon medic.  He refused medical evacuation and stayed in the field as their platoon was understrength.  Consequently, his medical records in the rear area were never updated concerning his wounds.

3.  The applicant provides:

* a statement, dated 4 September 2012, from the medic from his unit
* a statement, dated 25 November 2012, from his former company commander
* a statement, dated 26 November 2012, from a member of his unit
* a letter, dated 26 November 2012, from his doctor, Dr. G_____

 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.  On 19 May 1970, he was inducted into the Army of the United States.  

3.  He served in the Republic of Vietnam from 30 November 1970 to 
23 November 1971.  He was assigned to:

* Company C, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry from 13 December 1970 to 
25 March 1971
* Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry from 26 March 1971 to 3 April 1971
* Company C, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division from 
4 April 1971 to 22 November 1971

4.  Item 40 (Wounds) of his DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) is blank.

5.  Item 41 (Awards and Decorations) of his DA Form 20 does not show he was awarded the Purple Heart.

6.  A DA Form 3349 (Medical Condition - Physical Profile Record) from the Battalion Surgeon, dated 31 July 1971, assigned the applicant a T-3 temporary profile for hearing loss.

7.  On 27 November 1971, he was released from active duty.  His DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) does not show he was awarded the Purple Heart.

8.  His service medical records are not available for review and he is not listed on the Vietnam Casualty Listing.

9.  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 (HRC), failed to reveal any orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to the applicant.

10.  A letter, dated 27 September 2012, from the Awards Branch, HRC denied his request for the award of the Purple Heart based on the lack of medical documentation reflecting his wounds and medical treatment by a medical officer.

11.  The National Archives Access to Archival Databases (AAD) lists an SFC S________, Platoon Sergeant, of the 101st Airborne Division as being "hostile dead: killed outright" by an explosive device on 7 July 1971 in the Republic of Vietnam.

12.  The applicant provided a statement, dated 4 September 2012, from R__ S_____, medic.  Mr. S_____ stated:

	a.  The applicant received wounds from a booby trap that consisted of blast debris to his head and the shoulder area of his body.

	b.  He treated him for the wounds and it was his call for him to be airlifted back to the Camp Evans first aid station.  The applicant decided to remain in the area of operations and continued to carry out his duties as a Soldier.

13.  He provided a statement, dated 25 November 2012, from his former company commander, now a retired Regular Army colonel (COL).  COL S____ stated he was the company commander for C Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division.  He stated:

	a.  The applicant was wounded from an explosion that killed SFC S________. The applicant was SFC S________'s radio operator and he took debris from the explosive device to his face and body.  He had multiple wounds and loss of hearing.  

	b.  The platoon medic, R__ S_____, and G___ G______, one of the squad leaders, tended to his wounds.  The applicant refused medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) and, despite his wounds, stayed in the field with his rifle company.

	c.  If he had been MEDEVAC'd his wounds would have been entered in the medical records at C Company, 326th Medical Battalion at Camp Evans.

	d.  Their only battalion surgeon could not be with all four rifle companies and he expected the medics to handle minor wounds.  His rifle company did not carry any paper medical records them.  The reason the applicant's wounds received on 27 July 1971 were never entered in his medical records was the rifle company was in combat locations for months at a time and the medical records were back at the 3rd Brigade rear area at Camp Evans.  The few days they were at Camp Evans were spent re-clothing and re-equiping before being sent out again with very little thought or time to do paper work or check files.

	e.  He had not signed any morning reports during the 7 months as a company commander.  The extent of his record keeping was notes on a roster of company personnel that he kept in a waterproof bag in his rucksack.  Had the applicant been MEDEVAC'd the proper notations would have been made in his medical records.

14.  He provided a statement, dated 26 November 2012, from G___ A. G______.  Mr. G______ stated:

	a.  He was a member of C Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry, 
101st Airborne Division with the applicant on 27 July 1971.

	b.  SFC S________, the platoon leader, and his radio operator, the applicant, moved past his position and almost reached the top of a hill when SFC S________ stepped on a large booby trap which instantly took his life.  The applicant was following him by 10 to 15 feet and took debris from the explosive device to his face and body.

	c.  He had multiple wounds with imbedded rocks and extreme loss of hearing. He was disoriented and incoherent immediately following the explosion.

	d.  The applicant was removed from the hill where his wounds were tended by their medic, R__ S_____.  As he became more coherent, he was made aware of his wounds.  He was present when the medic urged the applicant to leave on the MEDEVAC helicopter so his wounds could be better tended at the 326th Medical Unit at Camp Evans.  

	e.  Being very dedicated to the unit, the applicant refused to board the MEDEVAC helicopter when it arrived.  The medic spent over an hour removing rocks and debris from him as well as bandaging and treating the many wounds.

	f.  Because of the death of their platoon leader and their platoon sergeant being MEDEVAC'd there was oversight in the absence of trained platoon leadership regarding responsibility of writing the award for those participating in this action during this period.

15.  He submitted a statement from Dr. G_____.  Dr. G_____ stated:

	a.  She conducted a physical examination of the applicant concerning the wounds he received in Vietnam.

	b.  The applicant still suffers from hearing loss from the blast and there have been no other incidents, either work or personal, in his life that would account for his severe hearing loss.

	c.  He still has areas of his face and neck that show signs of muscle and tissue atrophy consistent with injury from small foreign particles imbedded in the tissue from the explosive device from long ago.

	d.  All of his injuries are consistent with injury from an explosive device injury.

16.  Army Regulation 600-200 (Enlisted Personnel Management System), chapter 9 of the version in effect at the time, stated that a brief description of 
wounds or injuries (including injury from gas) requiring medical treatment that were received through hostile or enemy action, including those requiring hospitalization, would be entered in item 40 of the DA Form 20.

17.  Army Regulation 672-5-1 (Military Awards), then in effect, provided that the Purple Heart was awarded to any member of an Armed Force or any civilian national of the United States who while serving under competent authority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services had been wounded, killed, or who had died as a result of a wound sustained as a result of hostile action.  Not more than one award will be made for more than one wound or injury received at the same instant or from the same missile, force, explosion, or agent.  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.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  He contends he received shrapnel pieces around his face, eyes, arms, and legs when  SFC S________ stepped on an explosive device on 27 July 1971.  He refused medical evacuation and stayed in the field as their platoon was under strength.  

2.  In his statement, dated 4 September 2012, the platoon medic stated he treated the applicant for wounds consisting of blast debris to his head and shoulder area of his body from a booby trap.  He also stated the applicant decided not to be MEDEVAC'd, but to stay with his unit.

3.  The statements from his former company commander and a former member of his unit are consistent in the description of the applicant being wounded by flying debris to his face and body when SFC S________ stepped on an explosive device (booby trap).  The AAD List confirms that an SFC S________, assigned to the 101st Airborne Division, was killed outright on 27 July 1971 in the Republic of Vietnam by an explosive device.

4.  The statements from his former company commander, the platoon medic, and a former member of his unit are consistent in their assertion that the applicant refused to be MEDEVAC'd and wanted to remain with his unit.  During the Vietnam Conflict, it was not unusual for a dedicated Soldier who was not seriously wounded to refuse to be MEDEVAC'd and to remain with his already understrength unit to continue to fight.

5.  The statement from his former company commander provides a plausible explanation as to the reason there is no annotation of his wounds in his medical or personnel records.  Had he been MEDEVAC'd to Camp Evans his wounds would have most certainly been annotated in his medical records.  Units involved in combat situations for long periods of time did not carry their records with them.

6.  In view of the above, there is sufficient evidence to award the applicant the Purple Heart for wounds received on 27 July 1971 in the Republic of Vietnam.


BOARD VOTE:

___X__  ____X____  _____X___  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief.  As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by:

	a.  awarding him the Purple Heart for wounds received on 27 July 1971 in the Republic of Vietnam; and

	b.  amending his DD Form 214 by adding the award of the Purple Heart. 




      _______ _   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)                                         AR20130006755



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20130006755



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