PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF: 

	BOARD DATE:           1 August 2000                   
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR1999032569

	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. Robert J. McGowan		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Deborah S. Jacobs 		Chairperson	
	Ms. Karol A. Kennedy 		Member	
	Mr. Ernest W. Lutz 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 he be awarded the Purple Heart.

3.  The applicant states that in the April-May 1952 time frame, he was wounded during an attack by the Chinese when he was struck in the right ear by shrapnel. He adds that he reported to medical personnel for treatment and was told that he would receive the Purple Heart.  He states that, other than the scar he carries on the back of his right ear, he has no other proof.  He submits a copy of his DD Form 214, Report of Separation.

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.  It shows that the applicant was inducted into the Army of the United States for 2 years on 11 October 1950 and, following completion of the required military training, he was awarded military occupational specialty 11B (Infantry) and assigned to Japan, and then Korea.

5.  The applicant served 1 year, 5 months, and 7 days overseas.  He saw combat during the Korean War as a member of Company E, 160th Infantry Regiment, 40th Infantry Division and rose to the rank of Sergeant First Class.  He was awarded the Army of Occupation Medal (Japan), the Korean Service Medal with one Bronze Service Star, the United Nations Service Medal, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.

6.  The applicant was honorably discharged on 14 September 1952.  Block 29 (Wounds Received as a Result of Action with Enemy Forces) of his DD Form 214 shows no wounds.  His SF Form 88, Report of Medical Examination, completed at Camp Carson, Colorado, at the time of his separation does not list any wounds and his "Head, face, Neck, Scalp" and "Ears" are noted as being "Normal."

7.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 prescribes Army policy, criteria, and administrative instructions concerning individual military awards.  It states 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, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

8.  The above regulation also states, in pertinent part, that the National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) was established by Executive Order 10448, 22 April 1953, as amended by Executive Order 11265, 11 January 1966 and Executive Order 12776, 18 October 1991.  It is awarded for honorable active service for any period between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954, both dates inclusive, between 1 January 1961 and 14 August 1974, both dates inclusive, and 2 August 1990 to a date to be determined. 

9.  The regulation also prescribes that the Army Good Conduct Medal (AGCM) 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.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant was inducted in the Army of the United States and served honorably and well as an infantryman.  He saw combat during the Korean War and rose to the rank of Sergeant First Class.  Unfortunately, his records were destroyed in a fire and no evidence can be found to support his claim for the Purple Heart.

2.  Based upon a review of the applicant's DD Form 214, he is entitled to award of the AGCM and the NDSM.

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

RECOMMENDATION:

1.  That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by awarding to the individual concerned the AGCM and the NDSM.

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

BOARD VOTE:  

__dsj___  __kak____  __ewl___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		__Deborah S. Jacobs__
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR1999032569	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	20000801	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS	
REVIEW AUTHORITY	DASA	
ISSUES         1.	107.0015	
2.	107.0056	
3.	107.0069	
4.		
5.		
6.