PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            8 February 2001
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2000048729

	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:

	Ms. JoAnn H. Langston		Chairperson	
	Mr. George D. Paxson		Member	
	Mr. Donald P. Hupman, 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 his record reflect the time he spent as a Prisoner of War (POW) and that he be awarded the following awards:  POW Medal; Purple Heart (PH); Korean Service Medal (KSM) with bronze service star; and a Meritorious Unit Citation (MUC).

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that his separation document does not accurately reflect credit for the time he spent as a POW.  Further, he claims that he should be entitled to the awards listed in the preceding paragraph and they should be added to his separation document. 

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 includes a Department of Defense (DD) Form 214 (Report of Separation From the Armed Forces of the United States), which verifies that he enlisted in the Regular Army on 5 January 1949 and served on active duty until being honorably discharged on 23 October 1953, in the rank of corporal (CPL).  It also shows that he served overseas for 4 years, 5 months, and 4 days and that the most significant unit with which he served was Headquarters, 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment in Korea. 

6.  The DD Form 214 also shows, in block 27 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized), that he only earned the Army of Occupation Medal-Japan and the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB).  Further, there is a “None” entry in block 29 (wounds received as a result of action with enemy forces) and there are no remarks in the separation document that indicate that he was ever a POW. 

7.  The available evidence does include a military record finding report from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), dated 7 November 2000, which contains information from hospital admission cards created by the Office of The Surgeon General (OTSG) for the periods 1942 to 1045 and 1950 to 1954.  This report contains several records of admission pertaining to the applicant, two of which have entries pertinent to his POW and PH claims.

8.  The NARA report contains an OTSG admission record for the applicant that confirms he was admitted to medical treatment facility on 9 September 1950, after having received shell fragment wounds to the leg and thorax.  The report also confirms that he received the wound as a direct result of action against or by an organized enemy force. 

9.  A second OTSG admission record contained in the NARA report confirms that the applicant was admitted to a military treatment facility on 30 August 1953 for a follow up examination.  The report also shows, in the evacuation/prisoner status line entry, that he was a former prisoner of the enemy.  In addition, he provides a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) letter, dated 5 September 2000, which indicates that their records show he was a POW in Korea from 4 November 1950 to 30 August 1953.  

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 wounded or killed in action. It also stipulates that 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 and this treatment must have been made a matter of official record.  

11.  Paragraph 2-9 indicates that the POW Medal was authorized by law in 
1985 for any person who, while serving in any capacity with the U.S. Armed Forces, was taken prisoner and held captive after 5 April 1917.   

12.  Paragraph 2-10 contains guidance on awarding the National Defense Service Medal (NDSM), and states it is authorized to be awarded for honorable active service for any period between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954, both dates inclusive.

13.  Paragraph 4-4, gives the specific criteria for approval of the AGCM.  It states, in pertinent part, that immediate commander’s may award the AGCM for honorable service during a period of defined qualifying service.  Paragraph 
4-5 defines each 3 years of service completed on or after 27 August 1940 as a qualifying period for award of the AGCM.  The regulation also stipulates that the lack of official disqualifying comment by previous commanders qualifies the use of such period toward the award of the AGCM.

14.  Paragraph 5-8 contains criteria for awarding the Korean Service Medal (KSM).  It states in pertinent part that the KSM is awarded to members who served within the territorial limits of Korea or in waters immediately adjacent thereto during any period between 7 June 1950 and 27 July 1954.  In addition, a bronze service star is authorized for each campaign in which a member participates.  However, it is stipulated that POWs will not be accorded campaign credit during the time spent in confinement or while otherwise in restraint under enemy control.

15.  Paragraph 9-12 contains the criteria for awarding the United Nations Service Medal (UNSM).  It states, in pertinent part, that any member who served within the territorial limits of Korea during the period between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954, inclusive, are authorized to receive the UNSM.  It further indicates that any member awarded the KSM is automatically eligible for the UNSM.

16.  Paragraph 9-25 contains guidance on awarding the  Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation (ROKPUC).  The ROKPUC is awarded by the Korean government and not more than one ROKPUC will be worn by any individual and no oak leaf cluster or other appurtenance is authorized. 

17.  Department of the Army (DA) Pamphlet 672-1 (Unit Campaign Participation Credit Register-World War II) establishes the eligibility of individual members for campaign participation credit, assault landing credit, and unit citation badges awarded during the Korean Conflict.  It shows that the applicant’s unit, Headquarters, 1st battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, was credited with participation in seven campaigns between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1953.

18.  However, only two of these took place during periods when the applicant was not in a POW status.  These were the UN Defensive Campaign that took place from 27 June to 15 September 1950 and the UN Offensive Campaign from 16 September to 2 November 1950.  The pamphlet also establishes that the ROKPUC was authorized for members of his unit during the period he was assigned but lists no other authorized unit awards or citations for his unit during his assignment tenure. 

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  By regulation, in order to award a PH, it is necessary to establish that a member was wounded in action against a hostile enemy force, that the wound required treatment by a medical officer, and this treatment must have been made a matter of official record.  

2.  In the opinion of the Board, the NARA medical report pertaining to the applicant, provided by the OTSG, documenting his admission to a military treatment facility on 9 September 1950, sufficiently satisfies the regulatory burden of proof necessary for award of the PH.  Therefore, the Board concludes that it would appropriate to award him the PH based on his being wounded in action in Korea on 9 September 1950.  

3.  The available evidence, in the form of a OTSG medical admission report for 
30 August 1953 and a VA letter, dated 5 September 2000, confirm that the applicant was a POW from 4 November 1950 through 30 August 1953.  Thus, the Board finds it would be appropriate to codify this POW status in his separation document and to award him the POW Medal accordingly.

4.  The DD Form 214 on file shows that the applicant completed a total of 
4 years, 9 months, and 19 days of honorable active military service and there is no suggestion of a disciplinary history that would disqualify him from receiving the AGCM.  Therefore, the Board concludes that it would be appropriate to award him the AGCM for his first three years of honorable active duty service from 
5 January 1949 to 4 January 1951.

5.  Additionally, members who served honorably for any period between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954, were authorized the NDSM, and the Board finds that it appropriate to provide the applicant this award at this time based on his honorable service during the defined period. 

6.  The Board also concludes that the applicant’s documented service in Korea during a period for which the KSM was authorized and his participation in two campaigns of the Korean Conflict entitle him to receive the KSM with two bronze service stars.  Further, this entitlement confirms his eligibility for the UNSM and the Board determines he should receive these awards at this time. 

7.  The Board also noted that the applicant’s unit was authorized to receive the ROKPUC during his tenure of assignment and that it would be appropriate to provide him this award at this time.  

8.  In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:

1.  That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by:

a.  awarding the individual concerned the PH for wounds he received in action, on 9 September 1950, while serving as a CPL in Korea;

	b.  codifying the time spent by the individual concerned in a POW status from 4 November 1950 to 30 August 1953 and awarding him the POW Medal accordingly; 

c.  awarding him the AGCM based on his having completed three years of honorable active military service from 5 January 1949 to 4 January 1951;

d.  awarding him the NDSM for honorable service during an authorized period;

e.  awarding him the KSM with two bronze service stars and the UNSM, for his service and campaign participation in Korea;

f.  showing his entitlement to the ROKPUC, which was earned by his unit during the Korean Conflict during his assignment tenure;

g.  by providing him a corrected separation document that incorporates the changes outlined in the preceding paragraph. 

2.  That so much of the application as is in excess of the foregoing be denied.

BOARD VOTE:  

___dh___  ___jhl___  __gp____  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		____JoAnn H. Langston____
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000048729	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	2001/02/08	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	HD	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	1953/10/23	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR 615-360	
DISCHARGE REASON	ETS	
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PARTIAL	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  46	107.0000	
2.  61	107.0015	
3.  75	107.0029	
4.  115	107.0069	
5.  116	107.0070	
6.