MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION

	IN THE CASE OF:   

	BOARD DATE:            15 August 2000    
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2000041462

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

	Mr. Carl W. S. Chun		Director	
	Ms. Wanda L. Waller		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Thomas D. Howard, Jr.		Chairperson	
	Mr. Arthur A. Omartian		Member	
	Ms. Gail J. Wire		Member	

	The Board, established pursuant to authority contained in 10 U.S.C. 1552, convened at the call of the Chairperson on the above date.  In accordance with Army Regulation 15-185, the application and the available military records pertinent to the corrective action requested were reviewed to determine whether to authorize a formal hearing, recommend that the records be corrected without a formal hearing, or to deny the application without a formal hearing if it is determined that insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice.

	The applicant requests correction of military records as stated in the application to the Board and as restated herein.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

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

APPLICANT REQUESTS:  Award of the Purple Heart.  

APPLICANT STATES:  That his toes were amputated due to frostbite during combat in the Battle of the Bulge.  In support of his application, he submits a copy of his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation); a Standard Form 180 (Request Pertaining to Military Records), dated 15 February 2000; an unclassified information paper, dated 12 March 1957; VA documentation dated 7 February 2000; and an excerpt from Army Regulation 600-45 (Decorations) pertaining to the Purple Heart.       

EVIDENCE OF RECORD:  The applicant's military records show:

The applicant’s military records were destroyed or lost during the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973.  Records available to the Board were obtained from alternate sources and show that the applicant was inducted on
15 March 1944.  He served in the European Theater of Operations from 
23 October 1944 through 10 January 1945 and was honorably discharged by reason of physical disability on 31 July 1945.

The applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55, which was authenticated in his own hand, does not show the Purple Heart as an authorized award.  Item 34 (Wounds Received in Action) of the WD AGO Form 53-55 states “None”. 

There is no evidence in the available records that show the applicant was awarded the Purple Heart or was wounded as a result of hostile action.  

The available records contain information from the Hospital Admission Cards created by the Office of the Surgeon General, Department of the Army (1942-1945) which indicates the applicant was hospitalized and diagnosed with trenchfoot and gangrene on 4 January 1945 in the European Theater of Operations.  This record also shows the applicant was hospitalized for 208 days following the partial amputation of both feet.                

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, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.  The regulation also states that frostbite and trench foot injuries are examples of injuries or wounds which clearly do not qualify for award of the Purple Heart.

While award of the Purple Heart for frostbite injuries is currently prohibited, such injuries were previously a basis for the award.  Until 1951 Army Regulation 
600-45, which governed the award of Army decorations, stated that for the purpose of considering an award of the Purple Heart, a “wound” is defined as an injury to any part of the body from an outside force, element, or agent sustained while in action in the fact of the armed enemy or as a result of a hostile act of such enemy.  An “element” pertains to weather and the award of this decoration to personnel who were severely frostbitten while actually engaged in combat is authorized.  The regulation also specifically states that trench foot will not be considered as meriting award of the Purple Heart.

DISCUSSION:  Considering all the evidence, allegations, and information presented by the applicant, together with the evidence of record, applicable law and regulations, it is concluded:

1.  There is no evidence of record available to the Board, and the applicant has provided no evidence, which shows he was wounded or treated for wounds as a result of hostile action during World War II.

2.  The Board noted the applicant’s contention that his toes were amputated due to frostbite during combat in the Battle of the Bulge.  However, medical evidence of record shows the applicant was diagnosed with trench foot, not frostbite.  The governing regulation, in effect at the time of the applicant’s separation, specifically states that trench foot will not be considered as meriting award of the Purple Heart.  Therefore, the applicant is not entitled to correction of his military records to show award of the Purple Heart.

3.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must show to the satisfaction of the Board, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would satisfy this requirement.

4.  In view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's request.

DETERMINATION:  The applicant has failed to submit sufficient relevant evidence to demonstrate the existence of probable error or injustice.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

TDH____  AAO_____  GJW____  DENY APPLICATION

		    Carl W. S. Chun
		    Director, Army Board for Correction
    of Military Records

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000041462	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	20000815	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	19450731	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR 615-361  	
DISCHARGE REASON	Physical Disability	
BOARD DECISION	(DENY)	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	107.0015	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.