PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:           17 April 2001     
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2000050759

	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	
	Ms. Wanda L. Waller		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. John H. Kern		Chairperson	
	Mr. Melvin H. Meyer		Member	
	Ms. Margaret V. Thompson		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 award of the Combat Infantryman Badge.

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that he received the Purple Heart and the Combat Infantryman Badge while in the hospital.  He contends that he took basic training in an infantry battalion at Camp Croft, South Carolina, that he was assigned to the 63rd Infantry Division while stationed overseas, and that while serving as a rifleman in an infantry company he was wounded by enemy fire.  In support of his application, he submits a copy of orders for the Purple Heart, previous correspondence pertaining to his requests for award of the Combat Infantryman Badge and a photograph of a soldier.  

4.  The applicant’s military records were destroyed or lost during the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973.  Records available to the Board were obtained from alternate sources and show that the applicant was inducted on
21 September 1944.  He served as a rifleman in the European Theater of Operations from 11 February 1945 to approximately 15 July 1945.  He subsequently served as a draftsman (structural) and as a dog trainer in the European Theater of Operations until 11 May 1946.  The applicant was honorably discharged on 25 May 1946. 

5.  The applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation) does not show the Combat Infantryman Badge as an authorized award.  

6.  The applicant’s WD AGO Form 100 (Separation Qualification Record) shows that he served in military occupational specialty 745 (rifleman) for six months following his basic training.  Records show that his first assignment following basic training was in the European Theater of Operations.

7.  The applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 shows two awards of the Purple Heart for wounds received in action on 19 May 1945 and on a date unknown in the European Theater of Operations.  His discharge document also shows that Headquarters 63d Infantry Division General Orders Number 49 awarded the Purple Heart and that Headquarters 255th Infantry Regiment General Orders Number 10 awarded the Purple Heart (First Oak Leaf Cluster).   

8.  Headquarters 63d Infantry Division General Orders Number 49, dated 
19 March 1945, show the applicant was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received on 7 March 1945, not on 19 May 1945.            

9.  The General Orders for award of the Purple Heart (First Oak Leaf Cluster) are not available to the Board.

10.  The Office of the Surgeon General Hospital List shows the applicant was hospitalized on 17 March 1945 for a bullet wound to the thigh sustained as a result of hostile action in the European Theater of Operations.  This list also shows that the applicant was hospitalized on 19 March 1945 for upper extremity wounds from artillery shell fragments sustained as a result of hostile action in the European Theater of Operations.  These lists show the applicant’s arm of service as infantry.

11.  Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1, Unit Citation and Campaign Participation Credit Register, dated 6 July 1961, shows, among other information, occupation credit during World War II.  This document shows the unit to which the applicant was assigned, the 255th Infantry Regiment, received occupation credit for Germany for the period from 2 May 1945 to 18 September 1945.  This award is not shown on his discharge document. 

12.  There is no evidence in the available records which shows that the applicant was considered for or awarded the Good Conduct Medal.

13.  War Department Circular 269-1943 established the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Expert Infantryman Badge to recognize and provide an incentive to infantrymen.  The Expert Infantryman Badge was to be awarded for attainment of certain proficiency standards or by satisfactory performance of duty in action against the enemy.  The Combat Infantryman Badge was awarded for exemplary conduct in action against the enemy.  War Department Circular 186-1944 further provided that the Combat Infantryman Badge was to be awarded only to infantrymen serving with infantry units of brigade, regimental or smaller size.  Additionally, World War II holders of the Combat Infantryman Badge received a monthly pay supplement known as combat infantry pay and holders of the Expert Infantryman Badge were entitled to expert infantry pay.  Therefore, soldiers had economic as well as intangible reasons to ensure that their records were correct. Thus, pay records are frequently the best available source to verify entitlement to this award.  The Awards Branch, Total Army Personnel Command, has advised in similar cases that, during World War II, the Combat Infantryman Badge was normally awarded only to enlisted individuals who served in the following positions:

    a.  Light machine gunner (604)
    b.  Heavy machine gunner (605)
    c.  Platoon sergeant (651)
    d.  Squad leader (653)
    e.  Rifleman (745)
     f.  Automatic rifleman (746)
    g.  Heavy weapons NCO (812)
    h.  Gun crewman (864)

14.  Army Regulation 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.  The bronze oak leaf cluster is awarded to denote the second and succeeding awards of certain decorations, among which is the Purple Heart.

15.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) also provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze Star Medal is awarded for heroism and for meritorious achievement or service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The Bronze Star Medal 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 achievement or service, during that period, was confirmed by documents executed prior to 1 July 1947.  An award of the Combat Infantryman Badge or the Combat Medical Badge is considered to be a citation in orders.  This means, in effect, that the Bronze Star Medal is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized either badge for service during World War II.

16.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides that the Good Conduct Medal is awarded to individuals who distinguish themselves by their conduct, efficiency and fidelity during a qualifying period of active duty enlisted service.  The regulation states that, after 27 August 1940, three years of qualifying service was required for award of the Good Conduct Medal, but during the World War II era, the first award could be made based on one year of qualifying service provided that service occurred between 7 December 1941 to 2 March 1946.  The current standard for award of the Good Conduct Medal is 3 years of qualifying service, but as little as one year is required for the first award in those cases when the period of service ends with the termination of Federal military service.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  Evidence of record shows that the applicant served in an infantry MOS in an infantry regiment during World War II.  Evidence of record also shows that while serving as a rifleman, the applicant was wounded three times in action during World War II.  Based on the foregoing, the applicant is entitled to award of the Combat Infantryman Badge and correction of his military records to show this badge.

2.  The applicant’s discharge document shows two awards of the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in action on 19 May 1945 and on a date unknown.  However, there is no evidence of record which shows that the applicant was wounded in action on 19 May 1945.   

3.  Headquarters 63d Infantry Division General Orders Number 49, dated 
19 March 1945, show that the applicant was wounded in action on 7 March 1945. Medical evidence of record shows that the applicant was wounded on 17 March 1945 and on 19 March 1945 as a result of hostile action in the European Theater of Operations.  Therefore, the applicant is entitled to correction of his military records to show three awards of the Purple Heart which is correctly known as the Purple Heart (Second Oak Leaf Cluster) and that he was wounded on 7 March 1945, 17 March 1945, and on 19 March 1945.    

4.  The applicant is also entitled to the Bronze Star Medal (based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge).  Therefore, the applicant is entitled to correction of his military records to show this decoration.    

5.  The applicant’s unit received occupation credit for Germany for the period from 2 May 1945 to 18 September 1945.  Therefore, the applicant is entitled to award of the Army of Occupation Medal (Germany Clasp) and correction of his military records to show this medal.

6.  The applicant is entitled to the first award of the Good Conduct Medal based on completion of qualifying service from 21 September 1944 to 25 May 1946 ending termination of a period of Federal military service.  Therefore, the applicant is entitled to correction of his military records to show this award. 

7.  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:

a.  by deleting the entry “PURPLE HEART GO 49 HQ 63 INF DIV 9 MAR 45 W/O CC GO 10 HQ 255 HQ INF” in item 33 (Decorations and Citations) on the WD AGO Form 53-55 of the individual concerned; and

b.  by adding the entries “COMBAT INFANTRYMAN BADGE”, “PURPLE HEART (SECOND OAK LEAF CLUSTER)”, “BRONZE STAR MEDAL (BASED ON AWARD OF THE COMBAT INFANTRYMAN BADGE)” , “ARMY OF OCCUPATION MEDAL (GERMANY CLASP)” and “GOOD CONDUCT MEDAL” in item 33; and 

	c.  by deleting the entry “ETO 19 MAY 45 DATE UNKNOWN” in item
34 (Wounds Received in Action) on the WD AGO Form 53-55; and

d.  by adding the entry “7 MARCH 1945, 17 MARCH 1945, 19 MARCH 1945 IN EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS” in item 34. 

BOARD VOTE:  

JHK____  MHM____  MVT_____  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		_John H. Kern________
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000050759	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	20010417	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	19460525	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR 615-365  	
DISCHARGE REASON	Convenience of the Government	
BOARD DECISION	(GRANT PLUS)	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	107.0111	
2.	107.0015	
3.	107.0014	
4.	107.0067	
5.	107.0056	
6.