IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 5 June 2014
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20130018410
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 reconsideration of the previous Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) decision promulgated in Docket Number AR20120015020, dated 28 February 2013, wherein he requested award of the Purple Heart.
2. The applicant states:
* the sequence of events that led to his injury began with mortars raining down on the fire base his unit was occupying
* as he learned later, shrapnel from an exploded incoming round drove itself between the knuckles of his left hand, searing the flesh and closing the wound, leaving only a small drop of blood
* after a short time, he developed unexplained pain and swelling in his left hand at the injury site, which got progressively worse until it necessitated his medical evacuation and surgery
* after the surgery had been performed, his doctor showed him the shrapnel that had been removed from his hand
* an investigator interviewed him about the incident; however, he was still drugged up from surgery and he convinced the investigator he had not earned the Purple Heart
* the mortar attack, medical notes and investigator notes should be a matter of record
3. The applicant provides no other evidence in support of his request.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the ABCMR in Docket Number AR20120015020, dated 28 February 2013.
2. The applicant provides a new argument in support of his request, which was not previously considered by the Board; therefore, this new statement will now be considered by the Board.
3. On 28 February 1968, the applicant was inducted into the Army of the United States. He entered active duty, completed his initial entry training, and was awarded military occupational specialty 13B (Field Artillery Crewmember).
4. His record shows he served in the Republic of Vietnam from on or about 20 January 1969 through on or about 19 January 1970. During his service in Vietnam he was assigned to Battery C, 3rd Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment, 52nd Artillery Group, 1st Field Force Artillery.
5. On 19 January 1970, he was honorably released from active duty and transferred to the U.S. Army Reserve. The DD Form 214 he was issued shows he was credited with the completion of 1 year, 10 months and 22 days of total active service, including 11 months and 29 days of foreign service. His DD Form 214 does not show he was awarded the Purple Heart.
6. His medical records are not available for review. His available personnel record is void of documentation that shows he was wounded in combat or awarded the Purple Heart. His name is not listed on the Vietnam casualty roster.
7. A review of the Awards and Decorations Computer Assisted Retrieval System, an index of general orders issued during the Vietnam era between 1965 and 1973 maintained by the Military Awards Branch of the U.S. Army Human Resources Command, failed to reveal any orders for the Purple Heart.
8. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides that the Purple Heart is awarded to a member of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services after 5 April 1917, has been wounded or killed or who has died or may die after being wounded in any action against an enemy of the United States. Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The criteria for an award of the Purple Heart requires the submission of substantiating evidence that shows the injury/wound resulted from hostile action and required treatment by medical personnel. The resulting medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.
2. His record is void of any official Army documentation that shows he was wounded, his wounds were the result of hostile action, were treated by medical personnel, or that such treatment was made part of the official record. His name is not shown on the Vietnam casualty roster.
3. As in the original case, he contends he suffered fragmentation wounds from a mortar attack. Unfortunately, neither that attack nor the resulting injury he claims are substantiated by the evidence of record. In view of the foregoing, there is still an insufficient basis on which to grant award of 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 the overall merits of this case are
insufficient as a basis to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20120015020, dated 28 February 2013.
_______ _ 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) AR20130018410
2
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