IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 24 July 2014
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20130021553
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 the WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation, Honorable Service) of his deceased father, a former service member (FSM), be corrected to show his grade as staff sergeant (S/Sgt) vice sergeant (Sgt) and the following awards:
* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 3 bronze service stars (instead of 2 stars)
* Belgian Fourragere Lanyard
* Purple Heart
* Prisoner of War (POW) Medal
* Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Carbine Clasp
* American Campaign Medal
2. The applicant states:
a. In August 2013, he sent a request for his father's World War II medals and awards to the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis. He discovered some of his military service documents in his mother's house, but found none of his medals or awards. The NPRC confirmed some of his medals but not all awards since his service records were destroyed in a fire in 1973. He sent more documents to the NPRC to support his request, but they said they could not confirm his record and denied the request.
b. He has done a lot of research with the goal of reconstructing the details of his father's Army service during World War II. He discovered that after induction at age 32 in October 1942, he trained with a heavy weapons company at Camp Atterbury, IN (331st Infantry Regiment, 83rd Division), but he was transferred to another heavy weapons company with the 8th Regiment, 4th Division at Fort Jackson, SC, in December 1943. The 8th Regiment was making final preparations to depart for the European Theater, landing in the first wave on Utah Beach on D-Day. But his father underwent hernia surgery at Fort Jackson over Christmas 1943 and missed the 4th Division departure. After he recovered in February 1944, he joined the 106th Infantry Division and returned to Camp Atterbury, IN. His regiment, the 424th, arrived in France in December 1944 and soon went on the front line. There he was wounded and captured at Winterspelt, Germany, on 17 December 1944 during the Battle of the Bulge. He was held in several German POW camps for 4 or 5 months until the war ended. While in captivity, he suffered frozen feet, lost 40 pounds, and suffered a knee injury. After returning to the continental United States (CONUS), he recovered for a time at a redistribution station in Miami Beach, FL, and received promotion to S/Sgt. He was assigned to the Army Transportation Corps at Camp Kilmer, NJ, about September 1945. In October 1945, he was ordered to Fort Jay, NY, for separation and was honorably discharged on 22 October 1945. He returned home to Ohio to resume work on a farm.
c. This summer, he (the applicant) found a veteran of his father's Heavy Weapons Company D, 424th Regiment. He was also a heavy machine gun squad leader in his father's platoon. They were both wounded and captured on the same day at Winterspelt and were held in at least three POW camps in Germany (and what is now Poland) at the same time. He encouraged him to apply for his father's medals and awards and told him which ones he should receive. After this visit, he sent his request to the NPRC. In October, NPRC confirmed award of the Bronze Star Medal, Good Conduct Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 2 bronze service stars, World War II Victory Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge (1st Award), Expert Infantryman Badge, and Honorable Service Lapel Button.
d. He requested the NPRC consider the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal Campaign Medal with 3 bronze service stars (instead of 2 stars), Belgian Fourragere Lanyard, Purple Heart, Prisoner of War Medal, and Expert Marksman Qualification Badge with Carbine Clasp. Since then, he was told he should have included the American Campaign Medal on this list for his service in the United States of America during 1942, 1943 and 1944. And since a correction is being made to his father's lost service record, he has enclosed a copy of his promotion to S/Sgt on 31 August 1945, since this was not correct on his Army Separation Qualification Record and Honorable Discharge. After he returned home to Ohio, he petitioned to have the record corrected in November 1945 for back pay purposes but as far as he knows his discharge was never revised.
e. In conclusion, he is requesting two things. First, he would like his father's record restored to the extent that he may receive all of the awards and medals he was due thanks to his World War II Army service. Specifically, in addition to the medals that the NPRC agreed to on 10 October 2013 he believes he qualifies for the above-listed medals. Second, he would like his father's record revised to show his final grade of S/Sgt.
3. The applicant provides:
* WD AGO Form 53-55
* WD AGO Form 100 (Separation Qualification Record)
* Letter from the Office of the Post Fiscal Director, Fort Jay, NY
* Temporary Appointment to S/Sgt Memorandum
* FSM's Certificate of Death
* Correspondence with NPRC
* Printout from the National Archives website
* Extract of Department of the Army (DA) Pamphlet 672-1 (Unit Citation and Campaign Participation Credit Register)
* Letter, dated 24 February 1944, titled: Transmittal of Records
* Form 55 A (Clinical Record Brief)
* Duty Report, Convalescent station
* Special Orders Number 196, dated 5 October 1944
* POW Printout from the National Archives and Records Administration
* Department of the Army Rating Decision, dated 24 September 2012
* Photograph of an individual in military uniform
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 FSM's records are not available to the Board for review. A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members records at the NPRC in 1973. It is believed that his 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.
3. The FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was inducted into the Army of the United States on 13 October 1942 and he entered active service at Fort Hayes, OH, on 27 October 1942. This form also shows at the time of separation he held military occupational specialty (MOS) 605 (Squad Leader) and he was assigned to the 9201st TSU at Fort Jay, NY.
4. His WD AGO Form 100 shows in:
a. Item 3 (Grade) his grade as "Sgt";
b. Items 10 through 12 (Military Occupational Assignments), items 10 (Months), 11 (Grade), and 12 (MOS), the following entries:
* 4 months, private first class, Basic infantry 521
* 27 months, Sgt, Squad Leader 605
* 5 months, Sgt, POW, 521
c. Item 13 (Title-Description-Related Civilian Occupation), the entry "Squad Leader 605, led a heavy machine gun squad of 7 men who fought in the battle of the Bulge; captured by the Germans there; awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received in action; awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Good Conduct Medal."
5. He was honorably separated at Fort Jay, NY on 22 October 1945. He completed 2 years, 4 months, and 14 days of CONUS service and 7 months and 11 days of foreign service for a total of 3 years, 1 month, and 25 days. His WD AGO Form 53-55 shows in:
* Item 3 (Grade) and item 38 (Highest Grade Held), "Sgt"
* Item 31, he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, Expert Infantryman Badge, and Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Carbine Bar (abbreviated as Carbine - Ex)
* Item 32 (Battles and Campaigns), he participated in two campaigns during World War II: Ardennes and Rhineland
* Item 33 (Decorations and Citations) and item 55 (Remarks), he was awarded or authorized the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with two bronze service stars, Good Conduct Medal, and Lapel Button
* Item 34 (Wounds Received in Action), the entry "None"
* Item 36 (Service Outside CONUS), he departed CONUS on 21 October 1944 and he arrived in the European Theater of Operations (ETO) on 28 October 1944; he departed the ETO on 25 May 1945 and arrived back in CONUS on 2 June 1945
6. He provided the following documents:
a. A letter, dated 31 August 1945, issued by Army Service Forces, Headquarters Fourth Service Command, Atlanta, GA, Subject: Promotion of Personnel of Projects P and R, through the Commanding General, AG&SF Redistribution Station, Miami Beach, FL, to the FSM informing him that under the provisions of the Adjutant General Office, AG 383.6 (31 May 1945), 22 June 1945, Subject: Change Number 2 to POW, announcement was made of his temporary appointment to the grade of S/Sgt effective 31 August 1945.
b. A letter, dated 29 December 1945, from the Office of the Post Fiscal Director, informing the FSM that the original and a true copy of the letter, dated 31 August 1945, announcing his promotion to S/Sgt is returned. A carbon copy had been retained and would be forwarded with his claim to the Office of the Fiscal Director, Army Service Forces, Army Central Adjustment Office, St. Louis, MO.
c. FSM's death certificate showing he passed away on 11 February 1969.
d. Extract of DA Pamphlet 672-1 with multiple awards, campaigns, highlighted.
e. Letter, dated 24 February 1944, titled: Transmittal of Records, from Army Service Forces, Fourth Service Command, Fort Jackson, SC, to the commanding officer of 424th Infantry Regiment informing him that the FSM's records are being returned to him. The commanding officer of 424th Infantry Regiment acknowledged receipt.
f. Clinical Record Brief, dated 27 December 1943, that shows the FSM, a member of Company D, 8th Infantry, was admitted to the Station Hospital, Fort Jackson, on 20 December 1943. He had been transferred from the 8th Infantry Dispensary, Fort Jackson. He had a medical condition and was expected to remain at that hospital until 1 February 1944.
g. Duty Report, Convalescent, dated 20 December 1953, confirming the FSM's transfer from the dispensary to the hospital on 20 December 1943.
h. SO Number 196, issued by Headquarters, 424th infantry Regiment, Camp Atterbury, IN, on 5 October 1944, promoting the FSM to the temporary grade of Sgt, per recommendation of his parent organization commander.
i. A printout, dated 26 November 2013, from the National Archives, that confirms the FSM's name is listed on the National Archives, World War II POW Data File for the period 7 December 1941 to 19 November 1946 as having been imprisoned at Stalag 12A to 98B Limburg An Der Lahn Hassen-Nassau and that he was returned to military control, liberated or repatriated. The file lists the date of his POW status as 27 December 1944 and his parent unit as the "424th."
7. Army Regulation 635-8 (Separations Documents), currently in effect, establishes the standardized policy for preparing and distributing discharge documents. In pertinent part, it directs that, for a Soldier with POW documentation, enter "PRISONER OF WAR, (unit of assignment/country) (date of capture and release date)" in the Remarks section of the DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty).
8. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides for the following awards:
a. The Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained while in action against an enemy or 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, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.
b. The Bronze Star Medal is awarded to members of the armed forces who, after 6 December 1941 and prior to 3 September 1945, have been cited in orders or in a formal certificate for meritorious or exemplary conduct in ground combat against the armed enemy. A citation in orders for the Combat Infantryman Badge or Combat Medical Badge awarded in the field during the period of actual combat against the armed enemy is considered as a citation for exemplary conduct in ground combat.
c. The POW Medal was authorized on 8 November 1985 and it is awarded to individuals who in past armed conflicts were taken prisoner or held captive.
d. The World War II Victory Medal is awarded for service between 7 December 1941 and 31 December 1946, both dates inclusive.
e. The American Campaign Medal is awarded for qualifying service in the American Theater between 7 December 1941 and 2 March 1946. Qualifying service for this campaign medal includes service within the continental United States for an aggregate period of one year.
f. The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal is awarded for service within the European African-Middle Eastern Theater between 7 December 1941 and 8 November 1945. This regulation authorized bronze service stars to be worn on the appropriate campaign or service medal including the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal. It authorizes a bronze service star based on qualifying service for each campaign listed in appendix B of this regulation or listed in item 32 of the WD AGO Form 53-55.
g. The Belgian Fourragere may be awarded when a unit has been cited twice in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army. The award of the Belgian Fourragere is not automatic but must be by special decree of the Belgian Government. Persons who were present in only one action are not authorized to wear the Fourragere.
9. DA Pamphlet 672-1 is published to assist commanders and personnel officers in determining or establishing the eligibility of individual members for campaign participation credit, assault landing credit, unit citation emblems, and occupation credit for World War II and the Korean War.
a. The 424th Infantry Regiment, 106th Division, received campaign participation credit for the Ardennes-Alsace, Northern France, and Rhineland campaigns.
b. The 424th Infantry Regiment received a foreign unit award for service from 16 December to 31 December 1944 and 20 to 29 January 1945, based on Department of the Army General Orders Number 43, dated 1950. The code for this award is listed as 55 which designates the Belgian Fourragere.
c. The 424th Infantry Regiment received occupation credit for Germany from 20 May to 18 September 1945.
10. War Department Technical Manual 12-236 (Preparation of Separation Forms) provides that the appropriate separation form will be prepared for all enlisted personnel separated from the service by reason of discharge, retirement, or release from active duty or transfer to a Reserve Component. This manual states that item 3 shows the grade held by the enlisted member at the time of separation and item 38 shows the highest grade held by the enlisted member during current period of active duty. Additionally, item 55 is used for completion of entries specified in War Department Directives.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. With respect to the FSM's grade, the FSM was appointed to the temporary grade of S/Sgt per the letter issued by Headquarters Fourth Service Command on 31 August 1945. It appears his temporary appointment was a result of being a POW and was not timely transmitted to the transition station at the time of his separation on 22 October 1945. Therefore, he is entitled to correction of items 3 and 38 to show his grade and the highest grade held as S/Sgt vice Sgt.
2. With respect to the awards and decorations:
a. The FSM's WD AGO Form 100 shows the FSM was awarded the Purple Heart. This is accepted as sufficient evidence to correct his WD AGO Form 53-55 to show the Purple Heart.
b. The evidence of record shows he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge. Based on his entitlement to the Combat Infantryman Badge, he should be awarded the Bronze Star Medal. He is entitled to correction of his WD AGO Form 53-55 to show this award.
c. The available evidence shows the FSM was captured by enemy forces and held in a POW status from on or about 17 December 1944 to an unknown date. Despite the lack of conclusive evidence of his release date from captivity, given he departed the ETO on 25 May 1945, it appears that 30 April 1945 is an appropriate date of his return to military control. Therefore, it would be appropriate to award him the POW Medal, correct his WD AGO Form 53-55 to show his POW status and the POW medal.
d. The FSM served a qualifying period of service for award of the American Campaign Medal and World War II Victory Medal. Therefore, he is entitled to correction of his WD AGO Form 53-55 to show these awards.
e. The evidence of record shows he was a member of 424th Infantry Regiment and that this Regiment was credited with participation in three campaigns. Therefore, the FSM is entitled to correction of:
(1) Item 31 of his WD AGO Form 53-55 to show three instead of two campaigns (Ardennes-Alsace, Northern France, and Rhineland); and
(2) Item 33 to show the European-African Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with three (vice two) bronze service stars) to designate campaign participation in three campaigns.
f. The Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Carbine Bar is already shown on the FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55. However, it is shown as "Carbine Ex." As a matter of clarity, this entry should be deleted and the badge should be properly entered on his WD AGO Form 53-55.
h. The 424th Infantry Regiment was twice cited, and was awarded the Belgian Fourragere. The dates of the action are listed as 16 to 31 December 1944 and 20 to 29 January 1945. Since the FSM was in a POW status from on or about 17 December 1944 to on or about 30 April 1945, it appears he was not present for either action. Persons who were present in only one action are not authorized to wear the Fourragere. Likewise, persons who were not present for either action are also not authorized to wear the Fourragere.
BOARD VOTE:
________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF
___X____ ___X___ ___X____ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:
1. The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for partial relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by:
* deleting from items 3 and 38 of the FSM's WD AGO Form 53-55 the current entries (Sgt) and adding the entries (S/Sgt)
* deleting from item 31 the entry "Carbine Ex" and adding the entry "Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Carbine Bar"
* deleting from item 32 of his WD AGO Form 53-55 the existing entries (Ardennes and Rhineland) and adding the entries Ardennes-Alsace, Northern France, and Rhineland
* deleting from item 33 of his WD AGO Form 53-55 the European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal with two bronze service stars
* adding to item 33 of his WD AGO Form 53-55 the:
* Purple Heart
* Bronze Star Medal
* POW Medal
* World War II Victory Medal
* European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal with three bronze service stars
* American Campaign Medal
* adding to the Remarks section of his WD AGO Form 53-55 the entry "PRISONER OF WAR: 424th Infantry, Germany, 17 December 1944 to 30 April 1945"
2. The Board further determined that the evidence presented is insufficient to warrant a portion of the requested relief. As a result, the Board recommends denial of so much of the application that pertains to the Belgian Fourragere.
___________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) AR20130021553
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