PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:        

	BOARD DATE:            30 June 1999
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR1998012834

	I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in the case of the above-named individual.  

	Mr. Loren G. Harrell		Director	
	Mr. Jessie B. Strickland		Analyst	

The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. George D. Paxson		Chairperson	
	Mr. Arthur A. Omartian		Member	
	Mr. John P. Infante		Member	

	The applicant and counsel if any, did not appear before the Board.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

	Exhibit A - Application for correction of military 
            records
	Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including
	            advisory opinion, if any)

FINDINGS:

1.  The applicant has exhausted or the Board has waived the requirement for exhaustion of all administrative remedies afforded by existing law or regulations.

2.  The applicant requests, in two applications, that his records be corrected to reflect that he was discharged in the rank of sergeant.

3.  The applicant states that in June 1944, while his unit was engaged in heavy combat in Normandy, France, his commander promoted him from the rank of private first class (PFC) to that of communications sergeant (SGT).  He goes on to state that on 5 July 1944, while on patrol he was wounded by an enemy 88mm high explosive shell and was evacuated to a hospital in England.  While in the hospital he wrote to his first sergeant to find out where his promotion orders were and was informed that the commander had failed to process the advancement because he had been wounded before it could be done.  He further states that it was a battlefield promotion and that he simply wants his grave stone to reflect “sergeant” instead of “private”.  In support of his application he submits a copy of the “V-Mail” from his first sergeant as well as copies of his Certificate of Disability for Discharge and his Enlisted Record and Report of Separation.

4.  The applicant’s military records were destroyed in the 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis.  However, the documents submitted by the applicant show that the applicant was inducted on 20 August 1943, that he entered active duty in Boston, Massachusetts on 11 September 1943, and that he was initially trained as an infantryman.

5.  His records also show that he attended communications training at Camp Van Dorn in Mississippi and that he departed for the European Theater on 23 March 1944.  He arrived in Europe on 3 April 1944, was assigned to an infantry company and was wounded in Normandy on 5 July 1944 by an enemy 88mm high explosive shell that perforated his jaw and abdomen.  He was evacuated to a hospital in England and was subsequently evacuated to a hospital in Massachusetts where he was medically discharged and was issued a Certificate of Disability for Discharge on 2 June 1945. 

6.  At the time of his discharge he was discharged in the rank of PFC and his records show that he served as a communications chief.  He was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the European African Middle Eastern Theater Ribbon with one service star, the Good Conduct Ribbon, the Expert M1 Rifle Marksmanship Badge, and the Marksman (Carbine) Badge.

7.  The letter provided by the applicant from his first sergeant is a V-Mail message (free mail service provided to soldiers in combat zones) dated 29 September 1944.  The letter is addressed to the applicant at the hospital in England and it informs the applicant that he was still a PFC because the commander failed to put him in for advancement as the communications sergeant because he (the applicant) was wounded before the commander had the time to do it.
8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides Department of the Army policy and criteria for the award of military decorations.  It provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze Star Medal is awarded for heroism and for meritorious achievement or service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The Bronze Star Medal is authorized for each individual who was cited in orders or awarded a certificate for exemplary conduct in ground combat between 7 December 1941 and 2 September 1945 or whose achievement or service, during that period, was confirmed by documents executed prior to 1 July 1947.  An award of the Combat Infantryman Badge or the Combat Medical Badge is considered to be a citation in orders.  This means, in effect, that the Bronze Star Medal is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized either badge for service during World War II.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The Board is aware that there are instances in a combat environment where superiors are wounded or killed and subordinates are placed in leadership positions to ensure continuity of operations.  In most cases the individual concerned is promoted on the battlefield and the paperwork is accomplished after the fact.

2.  Although the applicant’s records were destroyed in the 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center, the applicant has provided sufficient evidence with his application to convince the Board that he was placed in the position of communications sergeant during the Normandy invasion and that it was the commander’s intent that he receive a promotion commensurate with the position.

3.  However, before the paperwork could be completed, the applicant was seriously wounded and evacuated from the theater of operations.  It is also apparent, based on the content of the “V-Mail” message that the applicant was under the impression that he had been promoted and the first sergeant was aware that he had been placed in the communications sergeant position as well. Given the circumstances at the time and the confusion that existed, it is understandable how such an oversight could have occurred.  

4.  Accordingly, it would be in the interest of justice to correct the administrative oversight by promoting the applicant to the rank of sergeant, the rank he would have received had the commander taken the appropriate action to promote him to the rank commensurate with the position/responsibility that he occupied. 

5.  Inasmuch as it cannot be determined with any degree of certainty what date he was to be promoted, it can be determined that he was wounded on 5 July 1944 and that he was serving as the communications sergeant when he was wounded.  Therefore, it would be appropriate to promote him to the rank of sergeant the day before he was wounded (4 July 1944).

6.   Although the authorization to award members the Bronze Star Medal was not enacted until after the applicant separated from the service, he was entitled to be awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service by virtue of his being awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge during World War II. 

7.  In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:

That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by showing that the individual concerned was promoted to the rank of sergeant on 4 July 1944 and that he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service.

BOARD VOTE:  

___gp___  ___ao___  __jpi____  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		____George D. Paxson_____
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR1998012834	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	1999/06/30	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  310 	131.0000/PROMOTION	
2.  60 	107.0014/BSM	
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.