PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:    

	BOARD DATE:           8 May 2003                  
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2003084705

	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. Joseph A. Adriance		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Samuel A. Crumpler 		Chairperson	
	Mr. Mark D. Manning		Member	
	Mr. Robert L. Duecaster		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 the Purple Heart (PH) be added to his record.  

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that his record shows that he was wounded in action in Korea, but does not include the PH as an authorized award.  

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.  However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.  

5.  The separation document (DD Form 214) issued to the applicant on the date of his release from active duty (REFRAD) shows that he was inducted into the Army of the United States on 15 June 1951, and that he continuously served on active duty until being honorably separated on 17 March 1953.  At the time of his discharge, he had completed a total of 1 year and 9 months of creditable active military service and he had accrued 3 days of time lost.  

6.  The applicant’s DD Form 214 also shows that he was promoted to the rank of private first class on 18 October 1952, and that he held that rank on the date of his separation.  It also confirms that he served in military occupational specialty 1745 (Light Weapons Infantryman), and that he served overseas for 9 months and 13 days.  This document also indicates that the applicant earned the Korean Service Medal (KSM) with 2 bronze service stars and the United Nations Service Medal (UNSM) during his tenure on active duty.  The PH is not included in the list of authorized awards contained in the DD Form 214.  However, Item 29 (Wounds Received as a Result of Action with Enemy Forces) contains an entry confirming that he was wounded in action in Korea on 31 July 1952, when he received a shell fragmentation wound to the left shoulder.  

7.  Also on file is a military record finding report from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), dated 7 February 2003.  This document contains information from hospital admission cards created by the Office of The Surgeon General (OTSG) for the period 1950-1954.  It indicates that while serving as a member of an infantry regiment, the applicant was admitted to a treatment facility in Korea on 31 July 1952, for treatment of a penetrating missile wound that he received as a direct result of action against or by an organized enemy.  

8.  The available documentation also includes an Authorization for Issuance of Awards (DA Form 1577), dated 23 January 1980, issued by the Department of the Army, Reserve Component Personnel Administration Center.  This document confirms that the applicant was issued or reissued the following awards at that time:  PH; National Defense Service Medal (NDSM); KSM with 2 bronze service stars; Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB); and the UNSM.  

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) prescribes Army policy and criteria concerning individual military awards.  Paragraph 2-8 contains the regulatory guidance pertaining to awarding the PH.  It states, in pertinent part, that in order to award a PH there must be evidence that a member was wounded or injured as a result of enemy action.  The wound or injury for which the PH is being awarded must have required treatment by a medical officer, this treatment must be supported by medical treatment records that were made a matter of official record. 

10.  Paragraph 2-10 of the awards regulation contains guidance on award of the NDSM.  It states, in pertinent part, that it was awarded for honorable active service for any period between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954, both dates inclusive.  Paragraph 8-6 contains the criteria for awarding the CIB.  It states, in pertinent part, that there are basically three requirements for award of the CIB; the soldier must be an infantryman satisfactorily performing infantry duties; must be assigned to an infantry unit during such time as the unit is engaged in active ground combat; and must actively participate in such ground combat. 

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The Board notes the applicant’s contention that the PH should be added to his record based on his being wounded in action in Korea, and it finds this claim has merit.  By regulation, in order to support awarding a member the PH, it is necessary to establish that a member was wounded in action, that the wound for which the award is being made required treatment by a medical officer, and that this treatment was made a matter of official record.  

2.  The Board finds that the medical casualty record pertaining to the applicant provided by the OTSG and contained in the NARA report, coupled with the supporting entry on the applicant’s DD Form 214 sufficiently satisfies the regulatory burden of proof necessary to support award of the PH.  

3.  By regulation, a member must serve in an infantry specialty, serve in an infantry unit, and be personally present with this unit while it is engaged in action against the enemy in order to qualify for award of the CIB.  

4.  The applicant’s separation document confirms that he served in MOS 1745 (Light Weapons Infantryman), and the NARA medical report on file verifies that he was serving with an infantry regiment on 31 July 1952, when he was admitted to a medical treatment facility in Korea for treatment of a wound he received in action.  The Board finds this evidence confirms that he satisfied all three of the regulatory requirements necessary to receive the CIB during his combat tour in Korea.  It also verifies the applicant’s entitlement to the NDSM based on his honorable active duty service during a qualifying period.  

5.  In view of the facts of this case, the Board affirms the applicant’s entitlement to the PH. CIB, and NDSM, and the Army’s 1980 DA Form 1577 action that authorized the issue of these awards to the applicant.  The Board also concludes that it would be appropriate to add these awards to his record at this time. 

7.  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 awarding the individual concerned the Purple Heart for being wounded in action on 31 July 1952, while serving as a private in Korea; by awarding him the Combat Infantryman Badge for his combat service in Korea; by showing he earned the National Defense Service Medal for his honorable active duty service during a qualifying period; and by providing him a corrected separation document that includes these awards. 

BOARD VOTE:  

__MM___  __SAC__  __RLD__  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		Samuel A. Crumpler
		   CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2003084705	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	2003/05/08	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	HD	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	1953/03/17	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR 615-363	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  61	107.0015	
2.  46	107.0000	
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.