PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:           11 September 2003
	DOCKET NUMBER:  AR2003088188

	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. Luis Almodova		Analyst	

The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Stanley Kelley		Chairperson	
	Mr. Christopher J. Prosser		Member	
	Mr. John T. Meixell		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 updated to show all awards to which he is entitled as a result of his Korean War service and for service in Germany, and that all wounds he received in combat be made a matter of record and correctly identified by date. 

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that he sustained a wound to the right side of his forehead from mortar shrapnel on 7 November 1952 and a shrapnel wound to the head, buttocks, and left thigh on 22 November 1952.  The applicant states that the date he was wounded shown in his service record is incorrect.  He remembers the date, 7 November 1952, because on this date, he became 22 years old.  He adds that he served with the 2nd Armored Division in Mainz, Germany, from May 1955 until September 1956. 

4.  In support of his application, the applicant submitted a copy of his DD Form 214, with an effective date of separation of 10 October 1950; a NA Form 13038 prepared by the National Personnel Records Center for the period 11 October 1950 to 20 September 1956; a DD Form 214, Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge, with an effective date of 22 June 1959; a copy of General Orders Number 329, Headquarters, 40th Infantry Division, dated 4 December 1952; 2 pages (containing sections 5 through 11) of his DA Form 24, Service Record; a DA Form 639, Recommendation for Award – Heroism, with two affidavits dated 23 and 24 November 1952, respectively; and three newspaper articles reporting that the applicant had been twice wounded in action in Korea.

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

6.  The DD Form 214, with an effective date of 10 October 1950, shows that the applicant enlisted in the Regular Army, on 4 August 1948, for 3 years, and was honorably discharged for the purpose of reenlisting to attend a service school.  He was discharged in the rank of Sergeant, and on the date of his discharge, he had 2 years, 2 months, and 6 days active Federal service.  Block 27 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) shows that he was awarded the Parachute Badge.

7.  The applicant's NA Form 13038, Certification of Military Service, dated 24 March 1998, which was created to replace a missing DD Form 214, shows that the applicant was honorably discharged on 20 September 1956, in the rank of Master Sergeant.  During this period of service, the applicant was awarded the Good Conduct Medal, the Korean Service Medal with three bronze service stars; the Bronze Star Medal with "V" Device and one Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster; the 

United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Purple Heart with one Oak Leaf Cluster, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Sharpshooter Badge with Rifle Bar; the Parachute Badge, and the Glider Badge.  This form also shows that the applicant was wounded in action in Korea on 9 November 1952 and in North Korea on 22 November 1952.

8.  The applicant reenlisted on 21 September 1956 for 3 years.  He was discharged on 22 June 1959 in the rank and pay grade, Master Sergeant, E-7, under the provisions of Army Regulation (AR) 635-205, for good and sufficient reason when determined by Headquarters, Department of the Army.  On the date of his discharge, the applicant had completed 10 years, 10 months, and 18 days active Federal service.  He was awarded a second award of the Good Conduct Medal.

9.  AR 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service for any period between 27 July 1950 through 27 July 1954, 1 January 1961 through 14 August 1974, 2 August 1990 through 30 November 1995, and 11 September 2001 to a date to be determined.

10.  Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1, Unit Citation and Campaign Participation Credit Register, dated 6 July 1961, shows that the applicant was assigned to a unit, Company G, 224th Infantry Regiment, 40th Infantry Division, which was awarded the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for the period 11 July 1952 through 1 October 1953 by Department of the Army General Order Number 24, dated 1954.

11.  The Hospitalization Admission Card data file created by the Office of the Surgeon General (OTSG), Department of the Army, shows the applicant was wounded in the face by shrapnel from a mortar round on 9 November 1952.  The applicant also sustained laceration wounds to the head, abdomen, buttock and hip, and arm and thigh by fragments from a hand grenade on 22 November 1952.  The applicant also sustained abrasions to his hand in the same incident.

12.  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 heroic 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 service award to eligible US veterans of the Korean War, or their surviving next of kin.  The medal is provided at no cost to veterans.  The Department of Defense 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 submit 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 provided.  Once the Department of the Air Force has authorized the Korean War Service Medal, the applicant may apply to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records to have it added to his DD Form 214.

13.  The NA Form 13038, Certification of Military Service, is issued in the absence of a copy of the actual Report of Separation, or its equivalent.  This document serves as verification of military service and may be used for any official purpose.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant served on active duty during one of the periods for which the National Defense Service Medal was awarded.  This award is not shown on the applicant's DD Form 214 with a separation date of 10 October 1950.  The National Defense Service Medal was correctly shown on the NA Form 13038 documenting the applicant's subsequent enlistment period; nonetheless, it would be appropriate to add this award to the DD Form 214, dated 10 October 1950, at this time.

2.  The applicant was assigned to a unit, Company G, 224th Infantry Regiment, 40th Infantry Division, at the time it was cited for award of the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation.  This award is not shown on the NA Form 13038 prepared on 24 March 1998.  It would be appropriate to have this unit award added and shown among the other awards earned by the applicant during this period of active duty service.

3.  Despite the applicant's recollection of the date he sustained his initial wound, official government documents that were transcribed to the Hospitalization Admission Card data file created by OTSG, show the applicant was wounded on 9 November 1952 and not 7 November 1952.

4.  A review of AR 600-8-22 failed to show that the applicant qualified for other service medals and/or ribbons while he was stationed in Germany.

5.  In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:

1.  That all Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by:

a.  awarding the applicant the National Defense Service Medal for his honorable active service from 27 July 1950  through the date of his discharge for the purposes of reenlistment, 10 October 1950, and having it added to the DD Form 214 of this date; and 

b.  awarding the applicant the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation and by having this award added to his NA Form 13038 dated 24 March 1998.

2.  That so much of the application as is in excess of the foregoing, changing the date that he was wounded from 9 November to 7 November 1952, be denied.

BOARD VOTE:  

__jm____  ___sk___  ___cjp___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		____Stanley Kelley_______
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2003088188	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	2003/09/11	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  46	107.0000/DE	
2.  61	107.0015/PH	
3.  1021	100.0200	
4.		
5.		
6.