BOARD DATE:	  28 January 2014

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20130008734 


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, the widow of a deceased former service member (FSM), requests her husband be posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and correction of his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation – Honorable Discharge) to show this award.

2.  The applicant states the FSM was wounded during the Battle of the Bulge and still suffered pain and limited mobility from the shrapnel in his left shoulder until his death.  He returned home on a hospital ship and was discharged at Camp Carson, CO on 22 December 1945.  A record of these movements was not included in his discharge papers or WD AGO Form 53-55.  He received disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and medical care at the VA hospital in Prescott, AZ.  The applicant contends the FSM should have been awarded the Purple Heart for wounds he sustained in battle.

3.  The applicant provides:

* WD AGO Form 53-55
* Honorable Discharge Certificate
* Marriage License
* Marriage Certificate
* Certificate of Death
* Disabled American Veterans letter, dated 6 April 2013


CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The FSM's military service 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 FSM's records were lost or destroyed in that fire.  However, a partial reconstructed record is available and the applicant provided a copy of the FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55.  These documents are sufficient evidence for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

2.  The FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was inducted into the Army of the United States on 25 January 1943 and entered active duty on 11 February 1943.

3.  His reconstructed record contains a WD AGO Form 8-24 (Sick Call Report), dated 29 November 1945, that shows he accidently dislocated his left shoulder on 26 June 1945 in France while playing organized baseball.  In addition, it was noted that this injury first occurred when he was still a civilian in October 1942 while lifting a dumbbell.  His chronic, recurrent, dislocated shoulder injury was determined to have existed prior to service (EPTS) but was aggravated by military service.

4.  On 29 November 1945, he was admitted to a convalescent hospital and on 
22 December 1945 he was honorably discharged with a certificate of disability.  He completed 2 years, 10 months, and 28 days of service for pay purposes.  His
WD AGO Form 53-55 shows in:

	a.  item 32 (Battles and Campaigns) he was credited with participation in the Rhineland and Ardennes campaigns; and

	b.  item 34 (Wounds Received In Action) the entry "None."

5.  There are no orders awarding the FSM the Purple Heart.

6.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) states the Purple Heart is awarded to any member who has been wounded or killed in action.  A wound is defined as an injury to any part of the body from an outside force, element, or agent sustained while in action in the face of the armed enemy or as a result of a hostile act of such enemy.  In order to support awarding a member the Purple Heart, it is necessary to establish that the wound for which the award is being made required treatment by medical personnel and the medical treatment for the wound or injury received in action must have been made a matter of official record.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends the FSM should be awarded the Purple Heart for a shrapnel wound to his left shoulder that he sustained during the Battle of the Bulge.

2.  The available evidence shows the FSM suffered chronic, recurrent dislocation of his left shoulder prior to his induction into the Army.  His shoulder injury was aggravated by service but there is no evidence to show he suffered a shrapnel wound to this shoulder or that he was wounded in action or as a result of enemy action.  In addition, the FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55 does not show he was wounded in action.

3.  The Army regulatory guidance governing the criteria for award of the Purple Heart is clear in that the wound for which the award is made must have been sustained while in action in the face of the armed enemy or as a result of a hostile act of such enemy, the wound must have required treatment by medical personnel, and record of the medical treatment for the wound or injury sustained in action must have been made a matter of official record.

4.  The FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55 clearly shows he served in the Army of the United States from 25 January 1943 to 22 December 1945 and that he participated in two campaigns during his World War II service.  Unfortunately, it appears all his other records were destroyed in the 1973 fire in St. Louis.

5.  In view of the foregoing, 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:

1.  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.

2.  The Board wants the applicant and all others to know that the sacrifices the FSM made in service to the United States during World War II are deeply appreciated.  The applicant and all Americans should be justifiably proud of the FSM's service in arms.




      _________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)                                         AR20130008734



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20130008734



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