IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  30 June 2015

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20140019657 


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 his earlier request for award of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states:

* he received a traumatic brain injury (TBI) while in combat in Vietnam from April 1969 to April 1970
* his substantiating evidence is the fact that he was a light infantry foot Soldier in the middle of a very volatile war
* there were many times where he was actually picked up and thrown by the explosions and left dazed/disoriented for days
* when a Soldier is in combat, all they think about is staying alive and trying to stay alive 
* before Vietnam, he was extremely active and he never had headaches; he went through training, including airborne training, with no headaches
* he was sent to Vietnam and he was exposed to multiple explosions of all kinds; upon his return, he experienced headaches and they became worse with time 
* he had a seizure in 1983 and he was diagnosed with Aneurysm by the Department of Veterans Affairs; this caused him bleeding 
* this had been going on for many years before manifesting in 1983; he had had permanent brain damage but has had no debilitating headaches since the brain surgery 
* all the time of his surgery, the VA did not recognize concussions, aneurism, TBI, or injuries received in combat
* he survived the Vietnam War, and the injury requiring brain surgery, which were connected, and both have totally and permanently impacted his life 
* he feels the Purple Heat is a recognition of all he gave during the Vietnam War; his Bronze Star Medal is attaches for consideration 

3.  The applicant provides a certificate and citation awarding him the Bronze Star Medal. 

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 Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number AR20130008976, on 14 January 2014. 

2.  The applicant provides a similar argument as previously provided in his first case.  However, he reworded his argument and elaborated it on it, which essentially made it a new argument that warrants consideration by the Board. 

3.  The applicant's records show he was inducted into the Army of the United States on 16 April 1968 and he held military occupational specialty (MOS) 11B (Light Weapons Infantryman).  Following MOS training, he completed airborne training at Fort Benning, GA.  

4.  His records show he served in Vietnam from 4 April 1969 to 23 March 1970.  He was assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 52nd Infantry, 198th Infantry Brigade.  

5.  He was honorably released from active duty in the rank/grade of specialist four/E-4 on 23 March 1970 and he was transferred to the U.S. Army Reserve.  His DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) shows he completed 1 year, 11 months, and 8 days of creditable active service and he was awarded or authorized the: 

* National Defense Service Medal
* Sharpshooter Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (M-14) 
* Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (M-16)
* Parachutist Badge
* Combat Infantryman Badge
* Bronze Star Medal
* Vietnam Service Medal
* Vietnam Campaign Medal

6.  There is no evidence of record that shows he was injured or wounded as a result of hostile action (emphasis added).  Nothing in several typical sources shows he was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action.

	a.  His medical records, which would have listed any injuries and treatment of such injuries, are not available for review with this case. 

	b.  Item 40 (Wounds) of his DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) does not show a combat wound or injury.  Army Regulation 600-200 (Enlisted Personnel Management System), chapter 9, stated a brief description of wounds or injuries (including injury from gas) requiring medical treatment received through hostile or enemy action, including those requiring hospitalization would be entered in item 40 of the DA Form 20.  This regulation further stated that the date the wound or injury occurred would also be placed in item 40.

	c.  Item 41 (Awards and Decorations) of his DA Form 20 does not show the Purple Heart.

	d.  His personnel records do not contain an official Army message or a Western Union telegram notifying his next of kin of an injury or wound sustained in action.  This was the proper notification procedure for injuries at the time.

	e.  His name is not shown on the Vietnam casualty listing.  This is a listing of Vietnam era casualties commonly used to verify entitlement to award of the Purple Heart.

	f.  A review of the Awards and Decorations Computer Assisted Retrieval System maintained by the U.S. Army Human Resources Command, which is an index of general orders issued during the Vietnam era between 1965 and 1973, failed to reveal any orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to the applicant.

7.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained 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. Examples of enemy-related injuries which justify award of the Purple Heart are injury caused by enemy bullet, shrapnel, or other projectile created by enemy action; injury caused by enemy placed mine or trap; and concussion injuries caused as a result of enemy generated explosions.  

8.  Military Personnel Message Number 11-125, issued by the U.S. Army Human Resources Command, Fort Knox, KY, dated 29 April 2011, informed all members of the Army that the Secretary of the Army had approved Army Directive 2011-07 (Awarding the Purple Heart).  The directive provides clarifying guidance to ensure the uniform application of advancements in medical knowledge and treatment protocols when considering recommendations for award of the Purple Heart for concussions (including mild traumatic brain and concussive injuries that do not result in a loss of consciousness).  This message does not change the standards for award of the Purple Heart for concussion injuries.  This policy is retroactive to 11 September 2001.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The criteria for award of the Purple Heart requires the submission of substantiating evidence to verify that a Soldier received a wound/injury as a result of hostile action, the wound/injury required medical treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

2.  The applicant contends:

* he received a traumatic brain injury (TBI) while in combat in Vietnam from April 1969 to April 1970; however, he does not provide evidence of such injury
* his substantiating evidence is the fact that he was a light infantry foot Soldier in the middle of a very volatile war; while it is true that most Soldiers were subjected to the ordeals of war while serving in Vietnam, not everyone who served in Vietnam was wounded in action 
* there were many times where he was actually picked up and thrown by the explosions and left dazed/disoriented for day; he provides no evidence of these events
* although the term "TBI" was not used during the Vietnam War and although the medical community and DOD now have a more thorough understanding of TBI, concussion injuries did not change the standards for award of the Purple Heart and are retroactive to 11 September 2001

3.  The applicant's record remains void of any evidence and he has not provided any substantiating evidence that shows he was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action, that he was treated for such wounds by medical personnel, and that his treatment was made a matter of official record.  In other words, none of the three components for award of the Purple Heart has been satisfied in this case. 

4.  Again, notwithstanding the applicant's sincerity, in the absence of conclusive evidence that shows he was wounded as a result of hostile action and treated for those wounds, regrettably, there is an insufficient evidentiary basis upon which to award the applicant the Purple Heart in this case.  

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 to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20140019657130008976, on 14 January 2014. 



      _______ _   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)                                         AR20140019657





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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20140019657



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