PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:      

	BOARD DATE:           11 October 2001                   
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2001054413

	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. W. E. Schnupp		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Joann H. Langston		Chairperson	
	Mr. Mark D. Manning		Member	
	Mr. Jose A. Martinez		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 he be awarded the Purple Heart and the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB).

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that the above decorations are not shown on his DD Form 214, Report of Separation.

4.  In support of his request, he submits a copy of his DD Form 214.

5.  The applicant’s military records were lost or destroyed in the 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center.  Information herein is derived from the document he submitted.

6.  His DD Form 214 shows that he entered active duty on 21 February 1952, was awarded the military occupational specialty (MOS) of light weapons infantryman, 1745, served in Korea, apparently with the 9th Infantry Regiment, and was retired for permanent disability on 30 September 1953 in the grade of private.  

7.  His awards include the Korean Service Medal with 1 Bronze Service Star and the United Nations Service Medal.  Neither the Purple Heart nor the CIB are shown as authorized awards.  However, block 29 (wounds received as a result of action with enemy forces) contains the entry “SFW, Perf Rt & Lft Femur, 28 Oct 52.”

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22, Military Awards, 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 by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

9.  The same regulation provides, in pertinent part, that to be eligible for the CIB, an individual must be an infantryman with an infantry MOS and must perform primary duty as an infantryman, as a member of an infantry unit of brigade or smaller size, during any period in which that unit was engaged in ground combat. Battle participation credit alone is not sufficient.

10.  The awards regulation also provides that the National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is awarded for honorable active service for any period between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The information in block 29 of the applicant’s DD Form 214 indicates that he was wounded in action as a result of a shell fragment in both legs and is entitled to the award of the Purple Heart for that wound.  Apparently, the award was inadvertently left off of the document by mistake and should now be added to correct that error.

2.  Likewise, by virtue of his service during the period 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954, he is entitled to the NDSM and to have this award reflected on his           DD Form 214.

3.  Unfortunately, there are no records available to show whether he was assigned to the 9th Infantry Regiment, as an infantryman while the unit was in combat.  Such evidence is necessary to establish his entitlement to the CIB.  Neither, has he provided any documentation to corroborate his status as an infantryman at that time.  In the absence of such evidence, there are no grounds for the Board to award the CIB.

4.  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 showing that the individual concerned was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received on 28 October 1952 and the NDSM.

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

BOARD VOTE:  

___jam__  ___mdm_  ____jl    _  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		__________Joann H. Langston_____
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001054413	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20011011	
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.