IN THE CASE OF: 

		BOARD DATE:	    28 August 2014

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20140000561 


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, award of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states he was injured during covert operations in Korea in May 1952.  No honors, ribbons, or medals were awarded for an injury he received while serving with the 42nd Engineer and 36th Engineer Combat Groups.  His records were lost in the fire at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC).  He was advised a National Defense Service Medal will be issued in March or April 2014.  His family did not know about these covert operations until May 2013.  He and his family are inquiring about any medals that should be presented to him for the injuries he received behind enemy lines.

3.  The applicant provides copies of the following:

* DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States)
* WD AGO Form 8-24 (Report Control Symbol Medical 19)
* letter from the NPRC
* U.S. Army Veteran Medal Status Inquiry Results
* Veterans Profile
* newspaper article alleged to be about him

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 provide in the statute of limitations, the ABCMR has elected to conduct a substantive review of the cases 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 sufficient bases to waive the statute of limitations.

2.  The applicant's complete military records are not available to the Board for review.  It is believed his records were lost or destroyed in the 1973 NPRC fire.  However, there was sufficient documentation submitted by the applicant for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

3.  The applicant provided copies of the following:

   a.  A DD Form 214 which shows he was inducted into the Army of the United States (AUS) on 13 August 1951 and served in military occupational specialty 1014 (wheel vehicle mechanic).

   b.  A WD AGO Form 8-24 which shows he was admitted to the U.S. Army Hospital, Fort Riley, KS, on 20 September 1951, received treatment for cellulitis with lymphangitis of the right little finger, and was released to duty on 27 September 1951.

4.  His available record contains Special Orders Number 170, dated 21 July 1953, releasing him from the AUS and active duty not by reason of physical disability on 23 July 1953.

5.  The available DD Form 214 shows he was honorably released from active duty on 23 July 1953 and was transferred to the Enlisted Reserve Corps.  He was credited with completing 1 year, 11 months, and 11 days of net active service and 1 year, 1 month, and 21 days of foreign service (his dates and place of service for this foreign service is not indicated).  Item 27 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations, and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) of his DD Form 214 lists the entry, "None."

6.  He also provided copies of the following:

   a.  A letter, dated 5 December 2013, wherein the NPRC advised his son that the record needed to answer his inquiry was not in their files.  If the record was there on 12 July 1973, it would have been in the area that suffered the most damage in the fire on that date and could have been destroyed.  No record had been found to show that the applicant was authorized the Purple Heart, United Nations Service Medal, or the Korean Service Medal.  If he felt an error or injustice had been made he could apply to the ABCMR.  The letter also advised of the enclosure of a separation document, the only document they were able to locate to aid in his submission to the ABCMR, and the authorized shipment of the National Defense Service Medal.

   b.  An U.S. Army Veteran Medal Status Inquiry Results, dated 16 December 2013, which shows a request was awaiting fulfillment by the U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command, Integrated Logistics Support Center, Clothing and Heraldry Product Support Integration Directorate in Philadelphia, PA, with an approximate shipment date between 30 March and 30 April 2014.

   c.  His Veterans Profile wherein he stated it took 62 years for him to reveal the extent of his involvement in the Korean War and he was told not to talk about it.  Sometime in February 1952, he was flown to Japan and then picked up a schooner to get to Korea.  When he reached his destination with the 36th Engineer Combat Group, he was assigned as a scout and their orders were to blow up stuff behind enemy lines that planes couldn't get to.  It was during a mission of rescuing American prisoners of war when the unexpected happened and his tour was cut short.  He was told to take the rescued prisoners for aid and he had a jeep.  There was a tank in the road and he hit a mine and was blown out of the jeep and hit against the tank.  His knee was hurt the worst.  He remembered waking up in a hospital in Seoul.  He was in Korea for three months before being sent back to Seattle.  Then he was sent to where he was originally supposed to be in Anchorage, AK.  He did not recall ever firing a shot behind enemy lines.

   d.  A newspaper article alleged to be about him which stated the individual was a Korean Conflict veteran who served as an engineer.

7.  There is no available evidence authorizing or awarding him the Purple Heart during his period of service.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Award) states the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained as a result of enemy 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.



DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  By regulation, to be awarded the Purple Heart it is necessary to establish that a Soldier was wounded or injured in action.  There must be evidence confirming the wound for which the award is being made was received as a direct result of or was caused by enemy action, that the wound was treated by medical personnel, and a record of this treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

2.  Unfortunately, there is no available evidence of record and he did not provide sufficient evidence to show he was wounded or sustained injuries as a result of enemy action for award of the Purple Heart during the Korean Conflict.  Without evidence, there is no basis to support his request for award of the Purple Heart.

3.  In making this determination, the applicant and all others concerned should know that this nation in no way diminishes the sacrifices made by him service to our Nation.  The applicant and all Americans should be justifiably proud of his service in arms.

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)                                         AR20140000561





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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20140000561



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