IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	 3 March 2015

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20140011913


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 never accorded/presented a Purple Heart.  He was wounded (head and leg) while in the Republic of Vietnam, during the Ben Het offensive on 3 March 1969, while assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment, 4th Infantry Division.

3.  The applicant provides:

* a letter from the Commander, Company B, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment
* an undated newspaper article stating he was wounded in action 
* a battle account; however, this document was not contained as part of the evidence provided with the application 

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 applicant enlisted in the Regular Army on 15 February 1968.  He completed training and was awarded military occupational specialty (MOS) 11E (Armor Crewman).  He was discharged on 10 March 1969 and immediately reenlisted on 11 March 1969; he was reclassified into MOS 71F (Postal Clerk), on or about 18 April 1969.  The highest rank/grade he attained during his period of military service was specialist four (SP4)/E-4.

3.  Item 31 (Foreign Service) of his DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) shows he served in the Republic of Vietnam from on or about 21 July 1968 to
19 February 1970. 

4.  Item 38 (Record of Assignments) shows he was assigned to three different units during his service in the Republic of Vietnam:
   
* Company A, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment, 4th Infantry Division
* Company B, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment, 4th Infantry Division 
* 39th Base Post Office, 518th Personnel Support Company

5.  Item 40 (Wounds) of his DA Form 20 is blank, indicating the absence of any documented wounds during his period of military service.  His available personnel record does not contain orders for the Purple Heart, nor does it contain any documentation indicating he was treated for wounds or injuries he sustained during his service in Vietnam.  His medical record is not available for review.

6.  On 17 December 1971, 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 3 years, 10 months, and 3 days of total active service during this period, including 1 year, 6 months, and 28 days of foreign service in the U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) theater of operations.  His DD Form 214 does not indicate he was awarded the Purple Heart.

7.  His name does not appear on the Vietnam casualty roster.

8.  A 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 U.S. Army Human Resources Command, failed to reveal any orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to the applicant.

9.  The applicant provides:

	a.  A typed personal statement from the former commander of Company B, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment who states, in effect, the following:

* the company commander's tank was hit and he (the company commander) and his tank commander were seriously injured
* the tank loader and driver were killed and the applicant came to their aid to help operate the tank 
* the landing zone at Ben Het was under fire
* due to his injuries (the company commander) he was unconscious most of the time, but did wake up on the evacuation helicopter and saw the applicant
* the applicant reported he suffered wounds to the head and leg during the Ben Het offensive
* on 5 March 1969, the Headquarters, 71st Evacuation Hospital (SMBL) established orders on 22 individuals for the Purple Heart for actions on 3 March 1969
* due to the heavy fighting over the next few weeks, military personnel were transferred with some lost in battle and records were lost or misplaced
* he supports the applicant and his effort be recognized for service to our country 

	b.  An undated newspaper article stating he was wounded in action (the applicant states it was dated September 1969) in Vietnam near Pleiku and he was in the hospital for shrapnel wounds to his head and legs.  It also states he was serving with Company B, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor Division [sic].  
 
10.  He states he provides a battle account; however; this document was not present with the application.  

11.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) states the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained 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 by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.





DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends he should be awarded the Purple Heart; however, neither his available record nor the Vietnam casualty roster provide any official evidence that shows he was wounded during his period of service in the Republic of Vietnam.  

2.  There is no evidence in the available Army records that shows the applicant received any wounds as a result of hostile action that required treatment by medical personnel, or that the resulting medical treatment was made a matter of official record.  There are no documents recommending him for, or orders awarding him, the Purple Heart. 

3.  The statement the applicant provided is acknowledged; however, in his recollection of past events, his former company commander does not specifically state the applicant was wounded.  He recalls the applicant reported to have been wounded; however, his own observations of the events of that date do not necessarily corroborate the applicant's statement.  By his own admission, he was unconscious much of the time, and likely sedated from his own injuries; therefore, his inability to definitively recall the circumstances surrounding, or severity of, the applicant's wounds (and subsequent treatment) is understandable.  Unfortunately, neither his former commander’s statement nor the newspaper article he provides are corroborated by military records.

4.  Notwithstanding his sincerity and faithful service, the absence of evidence to the contrary, there is an insufficient evidentiary basis upon which to grant the applicant’s request.    

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)                                         AR20100015543



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20140011913



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