MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION

	IN THE CASE OF:        

	BOARD DATE:             30 January 2001
	DOCKET NUMBER:    AR2000045899

	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	
	Mr. Walter Avery, Jr.		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Arthur A. Omartian		Chairperson	
	Mr. Thomas E. O'Shaughnessy		Member	
	Ms. Brenda F. Hirschi		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: That his military records be corrected to show he was awarded the Purple Heart and that he be issued all of the medals to which he is entitled.

APPLICANT STATES: That on or about 23 December 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge he was injured when the vehicle he was driving struck another vehicle. He was speeding along a road when he became distracted by gunfire that caused him to lose control of the vehicle.  He suffered a number of injuries, the most serious being a shattered kneecap.  He was interviewed while sedated by morphine, but he remembers telling an officer that he did not deserve the Purple Heart.  It is now some 56 years after the event, but with more maturity and balanced judgement he would like the award to wear during military ceremonies and also pass on to his children as evidence of the importance of serving one’s country.

In support of his request, he submits a copy of his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Separation Document).

EVIDENCE OF RECORD: The applicant's military records are not available.  The 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center most likely destroyed his records.  The information herein was provided by the applicant or was obtained from reconstructed files.

His WD AGO Form 53-55 shows that he entered active duty on 14 October 1942 and served as an operations noncommissioned officer in the European Theater of Operations.  He was honorably discharged on 10 October 1945 with a Certificate of Disability for Discharge at the Hospital Center, Camp Edwards Massachusetts.  

The WD AGO Form 53-55 was authenticated in his own hand at the time of his separation and does not show the Purple Heart as an authorized award.

There is no documentation in the available records showing that he is entitled to the Purple Heart.

In response to a request from his elected representative, the National Personnel Records Center advised that the other awards to which the applicant is already entitled were requested for issue to him on 14 April 2000.

Army Regulation (Military Awards) 600-8-22 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.

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 and the applicant has provided no evidence, which shows that he was recommended for or awarded the Purple Heart or that he was wounded or treated for wounds as a result of hostile action.  The Board does not accept that if the applicant was eligible for the Purple Heart it would not have been processed simply based on his request. 

2.  The applicant severely hindered his claim by waiting over 56 years to request award of the Purple Heart.  The unknown whereabouts and/or the passing of his former leaders and eyewitnesses prevents the verification of the applicant’s scenario of events.  Therefore, his request must be denied.

3.  The Board acknowledges and is sympathetic to the applicant’s poor health that may have been contracted while in service.  It appears that he is being properly treated by the Department of Veterans Affairs.  However, the applicant must appreciate that the Purple Heart can only be awarded for wounds received as a result of hostile action.

4.  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.

5.  The applicant was authorized issuance of his awards.  If he has not yet received them, he should contact the U S Army Soldier and Biological Chemical Command, IMMC, Soldier Systems Directorate, 700 Robbins Avenue, Post Office Box 57997, Philadelphia, PA 19111-7997.

6.  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

___aao __  ____teo __  ___bfh _  DENY APPLICATION

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

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000045899	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED		
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR .  .  .  .  .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION		
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	107.0015	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.