PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            23 October 2001
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2001059247

	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. Shirley L. Powell		Chairperson	
	Mr. Allen L. Raub		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 that his Report of Separation (WD AGO Form 53-55) be corrected to show that he was awarded the Purple Heart and the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB).

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was awarded the Purple Heart and the CIB and they were omitted from his WD AGO Form 53-55.  In support of his appeal he submits a copy of a letter dated 20 November 1945 requesting that he be awarded the CIB.

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 February 1943 and he successfully completed his training as a rifleman.

6.  His awards include the American Theater Service Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal w/Two Bronze Service Stars, the Good Conduct Medal, and the World War II Victory Medal.

7.  On 20 November 1945, the personnel officer of Headquarters, Prisoner of War Camp, Camp Butner, North Carolina sent a letter to The Adjutant General (TAG), Washington, D.C. requesting that the applicant be awarded the CIB.  The letter informed TAG that he had been assigned to the 398th Infantry, Company F from October 1944 until he was wounded in action and awarded the Purple Heart on 5 December 1944.

8.  The applicant was honorably discharged on 19 February 1946 for the Convenience of the Government as a result of demobilization.  The WD AGO Form 53-55 that he was furnished at the time of his discharge shows his duty assignment as the 398th Infantry unit.  However, his WD AGO Form 53-55 fails to show that he was ever award the Purple Heart and the CIB.

9.  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 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 that to be eligible for the Combat Infantryman Badge, a soldier must be an Army infantry or special forces officer in the grade of colonel or below, or an Army enlisted soldier or warrant officer with an infantry or special forces military occupational specialty (MOS), who 

subsequent to 6 December 1941 has satisfactorily performed duty while assigned or attached as a member of a infantry, ranger or special forces unit of brigade, regimental, or smaller size during any period such unit was engaged in active ground combat.

11.  The same regulation provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze Star Medal (BSM) 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.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  An error was made during the preparation of the applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 which resulted in the Purple Heart and the CIB being omitted.

2.  The available information indicates that the applicant was wounded on 5 December 1944 and was awarded the Purple Heart as a result of his wounds.

3.  He was also assigned to an infantry unit, performing the duties of a rifleman and engaged in ground combat with enemy forces when he was wounded.  Therefore, it is reasonable to presume that he was awarded the CIB and his WD AGO Form 53-55 should be corrected to reflect both the CIB and the Purple Heart.

4.  Additionally, in accordance with the applicable regulation he is entitled to the BSM based on his award of the CIB.

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 showing that the individual concerned was awarded the Purple Heart on 5 December 1944, while serving in the in the rank of Private First Class, the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Bronze Star Medal. 

BOARD VOTE:  

___alr___  __teo___  __slp____  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		____Shirley L. Powell_____
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001059247	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	2001/10/23	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  46	107.0000	
2.  60	107.0014	
3.  61	107.0015	
4.  157	107.0111	
5.		
6.