PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:            18 December 2001
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2001059787

	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. Lisa O. Guion		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Irene N. Wheelwright		Chairperson	
	Mr. Thomas Lanyi		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, in effect, that his records be corrected to show he was awarded the Purple Heart (PH).

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that he should be awarded the PH for wounds received in combat.  In support of his request, he provides a unit morning report, a witness statement, and two Reports of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States (DD Forms 214).

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.  Information herein was primarily obtained from his DD Forms 214. 

5.  The applicant’s separation documents show that he entered the Army on 
22 December 1948 and continuously served on active duty until being honorably discharged on 13 December 1957, after having completed a total of 8 years, 
11 months, and 5 days of active military service.

6.  His awards include the Bronze Star Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Presidential Unit Emblem, Army of Occupation Medal-Japan, Korean Service Medal with 
1 silver service star and 1 bronze service star, Combat Infantryman Badge, and United Nations Service Medal.  

7.  The available separation documents, which were issued to and authenticated by the applicant with his signature, do not show the PH as an authorized award and do not contain any entries that verify that he was wounded in action during his active duty tenure. 

8.  The applicant provides a witness statement from a unit medical corpsman (MEDIC), who indicates that the applicant received wounds to the face from a 20-millimeter gun.  He further states that the applicant was bleeding from his ear and rendered unconscious, at which point he field dressed the applicant’s wound and prepared him for evacuation to the nearest medical treatment facility. The morning report provided by the applicant confirms that he was evacuated to a medical treatment facility on 26 August 1950 and remained there until 29 August 1950.

9.  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 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 required treatment, and the medical treatment must have made a matter of official record.  

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant's records were lost or destroyed in the fire at the Records Center and there is no evidence that shows the applicant was awarded or recommended for the award of the PH.  

2.  However, in the opinion of the Board, the morning report and witness statement submitted by the applicant sufficiently confirm that he was treated for wounds sustained as a result of enemy action and that this wound was serious enough to require medical attention.  Therefore, the Board concludes the regulatory burden of proof necessary in order to award the PH has been met in this case.

3.  In addition, his assignment with an infantry unit in Korea, and his award of the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service in connection with ground operations against a hostile force all support the conclusion that his hospitalization was the result of his being wounded in action as indicated in the witness statement.  Therefore the Board concludes that the PH should be added to the applicant’s record at this time. 

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 to show that the individual concerned was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in action on 26 August 1950, while serving as a private first class in Korea; and by providing him a corrected separation document that includes this award. 

BOARD VOTE:  

__INW __   _ _TL __  __JAM __  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		    __Irene N. Wheelwright__
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001059787	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	2001/12/18	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	2001/12/	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR . . . . .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	107.0015	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.