PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:           14 December 2000
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2000045037

	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. Michael L. Engle		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. June Hajjar		Chairperson	
	Mr. Hubert O. Fry, Jr.		Member	
	Mr. Richard T. Dunbar		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 his records be corrected to reflect award of the Purple Heart (PH).

3.  The applicant states that he was wounded in action and that his separation document does not reflect he was awarded the PH.  In support of his application, he provides a copy of the Western Union telegram from The Adjutant General (TAG), informing his spouse that he was slightly wounded in action in France on 16 November 1944.  He also provides copies of his Separation Qualification Record, Honorable Discharge Certificate, and his Record and Report of Separation (WD AGO Form 53-55).

4.  The applicant's military records were lost or destroyed in the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973.  Information herein was obtained from reconstructed personnel records, which show he was inducted into the Army on 30 March 1944, completed his initial training, and was assigned for duty as a salvage man.  He served in the European Theater of Operations from                30 September 1944 to 12 January 1946.  He attained the rank of private first class and was honorably discharged on 5 February 1946.

5.  The applicant’s separation document (WD AGO Form 53-55) indicates that he was not wounded in action.  His awards include the Good Conduct Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 1 bronze service star, and the World War II Victory Medal.  He was also awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) on 21 December 1944.

6.  On 8 December 1944 the TAG dispatched a telegram to the applicant’s spouse informing her that the applicant had been wounded in action.  It did not specify the nature of the wound but stated that she would be kept advised of her husband’s condition. 

7.  Army Regulation 672-5-1 provides, in pertinent part, that the PH 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.  Army Regulation 672-5-1 provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is awarded for heroism and for meritorious achievement or service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The BSM 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 such achievement or service, during that period, was confirmed by documents executed prior to 1 July 1947.  An award of the CIB is considered to be a citation in orders.  This means, in effect, that the BSM is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized the CIB for service during World War II.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  Although there are no medical treatment records, the Western Union telegram dispatched by the TAG is convincing evidence that the applicant was indeed wounded as a result of hostile action.  Accordingly, he meets the criteria for award of the PH.

2.  The records show that the applicant was awarded the CIB on 21 December 1944.  Therefore, in accordance with Army policy cited above, he is entitled to award of the BSM. 

3.  In view of the foregoing, it would be appropriate to correct the applicant’s records as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:

That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case, particularly the WD AGO Form 53-55, dated 5 February 1946, be corrected:

a.  by showing in block 34 (Wounds Received in Action) that the individual concerned was wound on 16 November 1944 in France, and;

b.  by showing in block 33 (Decorations and citations) that he was awarded the PH and BSM.

BOARD VOTE:  

___JH___  __HOF__  __RTD__  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		____June Hajjar_______
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000045037	
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	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	107.00	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.