PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            23 January 2001
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2000046936

	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. Joseph A. Adriance		Analyst	

The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Luther L. Santiful		Chairperson	
	Mr. Walter T. Morrison		Member	
	Mr. Thomas E. O’Shaughnessy, 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, in effect, that the Purple Heart (PH) be added to his separation document.  

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was wounded in action during the Korean Conflict but no documentation was placed in his records.  He requests that his separation document be corrected to add the PH award and in support of his request he provided the enclosed Western Union Telegram to his parents, which indicates he was wounded in action in Korea on 29 October 1952.

4.  The applicant’s military records were not available to the Board for review.  A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members’ records at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973.  It is believed that the applicant’s records were lost in that fire.  

5.  The evidence or record does include a Department of Defense (DD)
Form 214 (Report of Separation From the Armed Forces of the United States), provided by the applicant, which was issued to him on the date of his separation from active duty. 

6.  This document verifies that he was inducted into the Army of the United States (AUS) on 2 April 1952 and confirms that he served on active duty until being honorably discharged on 5 January 1954, in the rank of private first class (PFC).  It also shows that he served overseas for 2 months and 4 days and that he earned the National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal with one bronze service star, United Nations Service Medal, and Combat Infantryman Badge.  However, the separation document indicates “None” in block 29 (wounds received as a result of action with enemy forces). 

7.  The record does contain a military record finding report from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), dated 18 September 2000, which contains information from hospital admission cards created by the Office of The Surgeon General (OTSG) for the period 1950-1954.  

8.  This NARA report indicates that the applicant was admitted to a medical treatment facility on 29 October 1952, after having received shell fragment wounds to the hand. The report also confirms that he received the wound as a direct result of action against or by an organized enemy force. 

9.  The applicant provided a copy of a Western Union Telegram sent to his parents by the Army Adjutant General.  This document indicates that he was wounded in action in Korea on 29 October 1952.  It further stated that the applicant had sustained a flesh wound to the right lower arm and left hand caused by artillery fire while attacking opposing forces.  

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) prescribes Army policy, criteria, and administrative instructions concerning individual military awards.  Paragraph 2-8 contains the regulatory guidance pertaining to awarding the PH.  It states, in pertinent part, that the PH is awarded to any member of an Armed Force who, while serving in any capacity with one of the Armed Services after 5 April 1917, has been wounded or killed in action.  

11.  The regulation defines a wound as an injury to any part of the body from an outside force or agent sustained under conditions defined by this regulation.  In order to support awarding a member the PH, it is necessary to establish that the wound, for which the award is being made, required treatment by a medical officer.  This treatment must be supported by records of medical treatment for the wound or injury received in action, and must have been made a matter of official record.  

12.  Chapter 4 prescribes the policy for award of the Army Good Conduct Medal (AGCM).  Paragraph 4-4, gives the specific criteria for approval of the AGCM.  It states, in pertinent part, that it is the immediate commander’s decision to award the AGCM based on his personal knowledge of the individual and on the individual’s official records.  It further states that the lack of official disqualifying comment by previous commanders allows that period of service to qualify for use in awarding the AGCM.  

13.  Paragraph 4-5 of the regulation defines periods of service which qualify for award of the AGCM.  It states, in pertinent part, that for the first award only, upon termination of service on or after 27 June 1950 a period of more than one year is a qualifying period for award of the AGCM.  The available evidence contains no indication that the applicant had committed any infractions that would have disqualified him from receiving the AGCM or that he was ever disqualified for the award by any of his immediate commanders.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The Board noted the applicant’s contention that a PH he earned for wounds received in action in Korea on 29 October 1952 was omitted from his records and finds this claim has merit.  In addition, the Board concludes that the applicant is eligible to receive the AGCM, which he did not specifically request. 

2.  By regulation, in order to award a PH, it is necessary to establish that the wound required treatment by a medical officer and this treatment must have been made a matter of official record.  The Board finds that the NARA medical report pertaining to the applicant, provided by the OTSG, sufficiently satisfies the regulatory burden of proof.

3.  The medical evidence documented in the NARA report is consistent with the applicant’s claim that he was wounded in action and received the PH as a result and the Board finds that it would appropriate to provide him the PH and to correct his separation document at this time. 

4.  The available evidence shows that the applicant completed a total of 1 year and 9 months of honorable active military service, which more than satisfies the one year qualifying period of service criteria for the first award of the AGCM.  There is no suggestion of a disciplinary history that would disqualify him from receiving the award.  Therefore, the Board concludes that it would be appropriate to award him the AGCM for his honorable active duty service from 2 April 1952 to 5 January 1954.

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 awarding the individual concerned the PH for wounds he received in action, on 29 October 1952, while serving as a PFC in Korea; by awarding him the AGCM based on having completed more than one year of honorable active military service upon his separation on 5 January 1954; and by providing him a corrected separation document that reflects these changes. 

BOARD VOTE:  

__teo ___  ___wtm__  __ls_____  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		____Luther L. Santiful_____
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000046936	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	2001/01/23	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	HD	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	1954/01/05	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR SR 615-363-5	
DISCHARGE REASON	ETS	
BOARD DECISION	GRANT	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  61	107.0015	
2.  67	107.0020	
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.