PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            3 August 2000
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2000040843

	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. Carl W. S. Chun		Director	
	Mr. Jessie B. Strickland		Analyst	

The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. John N. Slone		Chairperson	
	Mr. Edwin S. Castle		Member	
	Mr. Calvin M. Fowler		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 effect, that he be awarded the Purple Heart. 

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that he should be awarded the Purple Heart and his records corrected accordingly because he was wounded in combat during World War II (WWII) and was hospitalized. 

4.  The applicant’s military records were destroyed in the 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri.  However, reconstructed records obtained from alternate sources show that he was inducted on 4 April 1944 at Fort Bliss, Texas, received training as a rifleman, and was transferred to Europe on 14 October 1944.

5.  He was assigned to the 311th Infantry Regiment and was wounded in Europe on 13 March 1945 by artillery shell fragments.  He was hospitalized for treatment. and was subsequently transferred to Torney General Hospital in Palm Springs, California, where he was honorably discharged on 19 July 1945 in the rank of private first class (PFC) and was issued a Certificate of Disability Discharge.

6.  His report of separation (WD AGO Form 53-55) shows that he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) and the European-African-Middle Eastern Service Ribbon at the time of his discharge.

7.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound/injury sustained as a result of hostile action.  Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that the wound/injury was a result of hostile action, that the wound/injury must have required treatment by a medical officer, and that the medical treatment was made a matter of official record.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 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 CIB 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 evidence of record clearly shows that the applicant was wounded in combat on 13 March 1945, that he received medical treatment, and that he received a disability discharge for his wounds.  However, the evidence of record fails to show that he was ever awarded the Purple Heart for his wounds.  Therefore, it would be in the interest of justice to do so at this time.

2.  Additionally, although the authorization to award members the Bronze Star Medal was not enacted until after the applicant separated from the service, he nevertheless should have received the award based on his having been awarded the CIB.  Therefore, it would also be in the interest of justice to correct the administrative oversight at this time.

3.  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 awarding the individual concerned the Purple Heart for wounds received in combat against the enemy on 13 March 1945 and the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service during WWII while serving in the rank of PFC with the 311th Infantry Regiment.

BOARD VOTE:  

__esc ___  __js ____  __cmf___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		_____John N. Slone_______
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000040843	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	2000/08/03	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  61	107.0015/PH	
2.  60	107.0014/BSM	
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.