PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:      

	BOARD DATE:           19 SEPTEMBER 2002                  
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2002072967

	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. Kenneth H. Aucock		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Joann H. Langston		Chairperson	
	Ms. Melinda M. Darby		Member	
	Mr. Ronald E. Blakely		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 DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States) be corrected to show award of the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star Medal with oak leaf cluster. 

3.  The applicant states that his DD Form 214 does not reflect those awards.  He submits a copy of a 12 December 1994 letter from the Army Reserve Personnel Center in St. Louis informing a Member of Congress that he had been authorized the Purple Heart with oak leaf cluster.

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.  The applicant was inducted into the Army on 26 January 1951, served in Korea with the 5th Infantry Regiment, and was awarded the Korean Service Medal with one bronze service star, the United Nations Service Medal, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.  He was released from active duty on 25 October 1952 with an honorable characterization of service.  He had 1 year and 9 months of service, of which 1 year, 1 month, and 28 days was foreign service.  He had no lost time.  The 5th Infantry Regiment was awarded the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for its actions during the applicant’s assignment to that organization.   

6.  Medical records show that he sustained an acute lumbosacral strain as a result of a grenade concussion in Korea in November 1951, and that he was wounded in action by a shell fragment to his left lower cheek in 1952.  On         28 January 1995 the applicant applied to this Board for award of the Purple Heart with oak leaf cluster.  His request was approved and a 13 November 1996       DD Form 215 (Correction to DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) corrected his DD Form 214 to show award of the Purple Heart with one oak leaf cluster.
 
7.  There is no evidence, and the applicant has not submitted any to show that he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal or recommended for that award. 

8.  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.  This period is 3 years except in those cases when the period for the first award ends with the termination of a period of Federal military service.  Although there is no automatic entitlement to the Good Conduct Medal, disqualification must be justified.  

9.  That regulation 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 primary requirement for award of this, or any decoration, is that a formal recommendation must be prepared and administratively entered into official military channels by someone having witnessed or with knowledge of the act, achievement, or service to be honored.

10.  The National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service for any period between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954.

11.  As a matter of information, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Korean War, the Government of the Republic of Korea issued the Korean War Service Medal to pay tribute to eligible Korean War veterans for their historic endeavors to preserve the freedom of the Republic of Korea and the free world.  On 20 August 1999, the Department of Defense approved acceptance and wear of this foreign award to eligible US veterans of the Korean War, or their surviving next of kin.  The medal is provided at no cost to the veterans.

12.  The Department of Defense has assigned responsibility to the Department of the Air Force for distribution of the Korean War Service Medal to eligible veterans or their surviving next of kin.  To apply, veterans must provide a copy of their discharge paper (DD Form 214) to the Awards and Decorations Section, Headquarters, Air Force Personnel Center, 550 C Street West, Suite 12, Randolph Air Force Base, Texas 78150-4714.  A sample request form is being provided to the applicant.  Once the Korean War Service Medal has been authorized by the Department of the Air Force, the applicant may apply to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records to add this foreign award to his   DD Form 214.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant has not provided evidence to show that he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal or that he was recommended for that award.  There is insufficient evidence to correct his records to reflect that award. 

2.  The applicant served his country faithfully and honorably.  He is entitled to award of the Army Good Conduct Medal for the period 26 January 1951 through 25 October 1952.  He is also entitled to award of the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation and the National Defense Service Medal.

3.  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 Army Good Conduct Medal, the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation, and the National Defense Service Medal. 

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

NOTE:  The Army Review Boards Agency in St. Louis is requested to forward the applicant a copy of the 13 November 1996 DD Form 215 showing that he was awarded the Purple Heart with one oak leaf cluster.

BOARD VOTE:  

__JHL __  __MMD__  __REB__  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		___Joann H. Langston_____
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2002072967	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20020919	
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.	110.00	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.