PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:     

	BOARD DATE:           14 December 2000                  
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2000042561

	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. W. E. Schnupp		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. June Hajjar		Chairperson	
	Mr. Richard T. Dunbar		Member	
	Mr. Hubert O. Fry, Jr.		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 that he be awarded the Purple Heart.

3.  The applicant states that he was injured in combat during World War II, evacuated and awarded compensation but no Purple Heart.  His injury occurred at Bougainville.

4.  The applicant’s military records show that he was inducted on 25 April 1941, served in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater of Operations (Guadalcanal campaign) from January 1942 to July 1944 and was honorably discharged on 19 November 1944 in the grade of sergeant. The record shows the character of his service as excellent with no time lost.

5.  His awards include the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with one service star, the American Defense Service Medal, the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB), the Marksman Badge with Rifle Bar and the World War II Honorable Service Lapel Button.

6.  Evidence of record shows that on 9 February 1944 the applicant twisted his knee while on a combat patrol going through a swamp which resulted in a torn meniscus cartilage.  Following surgery for the injury, a Board of Medical Officers reviewed his case to determine his fitness for duty.  The board found that he should be evacuated to the States for further treatment.  He was discharged following that treatment.

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 a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

8.  Subsequent to the cessation of hostilities during World War II, the regulation governing the award of the Bronze Star Medal was changed, in part, to provide for the award of this decoration to those individuals who had been awarded the CIB for meritorious achievement in ground combat against the armed enemy between 7 December 1941 and 2 September 1945.

9.  The awards regulation also provides that the Good Conduct Medal may be awarded on a selective basis to soldiers who distinguish themselves by 

exemplary conduct, efficiency and fidelity throughout a specified period of continuous enlisted active Federal military service, normally 3 years.

10.  The same regulation prescribes that the World War II Victory Medal is awarded for service between 7 December 1941 and 31 December 1946.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The evidence of record shows that the applicant was injured while on a combat patrol on 9 February 1944 during World War II, and that injury meets the criteria for award of the Purple Heart.

2.  Further, since he was awarded the CIB during his World War II service, he is also entitled to the Bronze Star Medal based on that award.  

3.  Additionally, his record shows that he served on active duty for over 3 years with no indication that his service was anything other than excellent and he received an honorable discharge.  It would appear therefore, that he is entitled to the Good Conduct Medal for this period of service.

4.  Finally, his service during the 1941 through 1944 period also entitles him to the World War II Victory Medal.

5.  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:

	a.  showing that the individual concerned was awarded the Purple Heart for combat injuries suffered on 9 February 1944; and

b.  showing that he was also awarded the Bronze Star Medal (based on award of the CIB), the Good Conduct Medal for the period 25 April 1941 to 

19 November 1944, and the World War II Victory Medal.

BOARD VOTE:  

___jh ___  ____rtd _  ___hof___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		__________June Hajjar_________
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000042561	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20001214	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR . . . . .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	(GRANT PLUS)	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1. 107.00		
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.