PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            7 August 2001
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2001055095

	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. Deyon D. Battle		Analyst	

The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Margaret K. Patterson		Chairperson	
	Mr. Thomas B. Redfern, III		Member	
	Ms. Regan K. Smith		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 his Enlisted Record and Report of Separation (WD AGO Form 53-55) be corrected to show that he was awarded the Purple Heart.

3.  The applicant states that in 1945, he received shrapnel wounds and had to be hospitalized as a result of his injuries.

4.  The applicant’s military records were lost or destroyed in the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973.  Information herein was obtained from alternate sources.

5.  He was inducted into the Army on 10 September 1942 and he successfully completed his training as a machine gunner.

6.  He was honorably discharged on 12 October 1945.  The WD AGO Form 
53-55 that he was furnished at the time of his discharge shows that he was awarded the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal w/three bronze service stars, the Philippine Liberation Ribbon w/one bronze service star and the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB).  His WD AGO Form 53-55 also lists the Purple Heart as one of his decorations; however, it also includes a “NO RECORD” entry which indicates that there was no record of the applicant being entitled to the award prior to his discharge.

7.  The WD AGO Form 53-55 shows that he arrived in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater on 22 April 1943; that he was wounded in action on 2 February 1945; and that he returned to the Continental United States on 13 July 1945.

8.  The Board noted that he is also entitled to the Bronze Star Medal (BSM) based on his award of the CIB and the World War II Victory Medal which are not shown on his separation document.

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound/injury sustained as a result of hostile action.  Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that the wound/injury was the result of hostile action, the wound/injury must have required treatment by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 also provides, in pertinent part, that the BSM is awarded for heroism and for meritorious achievement or service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The BSM 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 CIB 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.

11.  That same regulation provides for award of the World War II Victory Medal.  It is awarded for service between 7 December 1941 and 31 December 1946, both dates inclusive.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  Although his WD AGO Form 53-55 indicates that, at the time of his discharge, there was no record of the applicant being issued the Purple Heart, there certainly was enough information to make the determination that he was wounded in action on 2 February 1945.

2.  The available evidence clearly shows that he was in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater from 22 April 1943 until 13 July 1945 performing the duties of a machine gunner and it is reasonable to presume that he was, in fact, awarded the Purple Heart.

3.  The Board has also noted that the applicant’s is also shows that he is entitled to the BSM based on the award of the CIB and the World War II Victory Medal.  Therefore, it would be in the interest of justice to correct his records to show all of the awards to which he is entitled.

4.  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 “NO RECORD” entry pertaining to the Purple Heart currently reflected in item number 33 (Decorations and Citations) on the WD AGO Form 53-55 of the individual concerned; and

b.  by awarding him the Bronze Star Medal based on the award of the Combat Infantryman Badge and the World War II Victory Medal.

BOARD VOTE:  

___tbr___  __mkp __  ___rks___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		___Margaret K. Patterson___
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001055095	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	2001/08/02	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  46	107.0000.0000	
2.  60	107.0014.0000	
3.  61	107.0015.0000	
4.  112	107.0066.0000	
5.  113	107.0067.0000	
6.