PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF: 

	BOARD DATE:           18 July 2000                   
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR1999034028

	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:

	Mr. George D. Paxson		Chairperson	
	Ms. Elizabeth Buchanon		Member	
	Ms. Margaret V. Thompson		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 approximately 4 months of lost time be restored to him as good time, and that he be awarded all medals to which he is entitled.

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that he served in Company L, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division from 19 July 1940 to 26 October 1944; that he was a staff sergeant and an infantry squad leader; that he was severely wounded in Italy and wandered about until returned to military control [thereby presumably accounting for the lost time], and; that he is entitled to a number of medals.  He requests the Congressional Medal of Honor (MOH), the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC), the Silver Star (SS), the Bronze Star Medal (BSM) for Valor, the Purple Heart (PH) (30 awards), the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB), The Distinguished Unit Badge (sic), the Army Commendation Medal (ARCOM), the American Defense Service Medal (ADSM), the Army Good Conduct Medal (AGCM), and the European-African-Middle Eastern (EAME) Campaign Medal with 3 Bronze Stars.

4.  In support of his request, the applicant submits:  a list of 30 wounds he claims to have received; a 5 November 1999 letter which he wrote to the Department of the Army  (DA) concerning his medals and correction of his discharge papers; a copy of another soldier’s WD AGO Form 280, Certificate of Service, showing award of the MOH, DSC, SS, BSM, PH, EAME, Distinguished Unit Citation, CIB, ADSM, and Military Cross of British Empire; a self-authored Certificate of Service showing that the applicant was a staff sergeant and was awarded the MOH, DSC, BSM for valor, PH (30 awards) CIB, Distinguished Unit Badge (sic), ARCOM, ADSM, AGCM, EAME; an undated letter from the applicant to the DA in which he provides 525 affidavits of support; NA Form 13075, Questionnaire About Military Service; a self-authored letter which the applicant mailed to some 9,000 veterans of the 3rd Infantry Division soliciting support for his request; a self-authored affidavit which the applicant sent to veterans of the 3rd Infantry Division for them to sign and return in a stamped, self-addressed envelope; and a copy of the applicant’s Enlisted Record of Service.  The Enlisted Record of Service shows that the applicant’s highest rank was sergeant; that he was an infantry squad leader (Army specialty #653); that he was awarded the PH; and that he fought in North Africa, Sicily, and Italy.

5.  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, to include the Enlisted Record of Service submitted by the applicant.

6.  The applicant served on active duty in the Regular Army from 19 July 1940 to 26 October 1944.  A member of the 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, he participated in the following official campaigns – Algeria-French Morocco from 8-11 November 1942, Tunisia from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943, Sicily from 9 July to 17 August 1943, and Naples-Foggia from 9 September 1943 to 21 January 1944.  He was promoted from the rank of corporal to sergeant on 3 September 1943.

7.  The applicant was listed as absent without leave (AWOL) from 4 December 1943 through 2 March 1944 and from 6-17 March 1944.  Since he was not with his unit during this period of time, he did not participate in the landing at Anzio on 22 January 1944.  On 12 April 1944, he was reduced from sergeant to private.  Following his reduction, he underwent a series of transfers -- from Headquarters (HQ), 30th Infantry Regiment to HQ, 7th Replacement Depot on 14 June 1944, to the Personnel Processing Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, and, finally, to the Surplus Detachment, Camp Shelby, Mississippi.  He was honorably discharged at Camp Shelby on 26 October 1944.

8.  On 17 June 1992 and 15 September 1992, the applicant wrote to the US Army Reserve Personnel Center (ARPERCEN) inquiring about his awards.  Because his records had been destroyed in the 1973 fire, and because he was unable to provide a copy of his WD AGO Form 53-55, Enlisted Record and Report of Honorable Discharge, ARPERCEN was only able to verify his entitlement to the American Defense Service Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, and World War II Lapel Button.

9.  War Department Circular 269-1943 established the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) to recognize and provide an incentive to infantrymen for exemplary conduct in action against the enemy.  War Department Circular 186-1944 further provided that the Combat Infantryman Badge was to be awarded only to infantrymen serving with infantry units of brigade, regimental or smaller size and only to enlisted individuals who served in one of the following positions:

    a.  Light machine gunner (604)
    b.  Heavy machine gunner (605)
    c.  Platoon sergeant (651)
    d.  Squad leader (653)
    e.  Rifleman (745)
    f.  Automatic rifleman (746)
    g.  Heavy weapons NCO (812)
    h.  Gun crewman (864)

No other soldier in combat is more exposed on a daily basis to the dangers and hardships of war and no other branch of the service suffers more casualties than the infantry.  To maintain the prestige, uniqueness, and traditional value of the Combat Infantryman Badge, the criteria for award has changed little over the years.

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 prescribes the policy, criteria, and administrative instructions concerning individual military awards.  It provides, in pertinent part, that the BSM is awarded for heroism and for meritorious achievement or service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The BSM is authorized for each individual who was cited in orders or awarded a certificate for exemplary conduct in ground combat between 7 December 1941 and 2 September 1945 or whose achievement or service during that period was confirmed by documents executed prior to 1 July 1947.  An award of the Combat Infantryman Badge or the Combat Medical Badge is considered to be a citation in orders.  This means, in effect, that the BSM is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized either badge for service during World War II.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  Available records conclusively prove that the applicant was absent without proper authority for 102 days from 4 December 1943 to 17 March 1944 and that, upon his return to military control, he was punished by being reduced from the rank of sergeant to private.  The applicant is not entitled to a correction of this lost time.

2.  The applicant served with the 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division as an infantry squad leader.  His Enlisted Record of Service shows that he was wounded and was awarded the PH.  Because of his infantry squad leader specialty and the fact that he was awarded a PH, he is therefore entitled to the CIB and the BSM for meritorious service.  He is also entitled to the World War II Victory Medal.

3.  The applicant served in the European Theater of Operations and participated in 4 campaigns – Algeria-French Morocco, Tunisia, Sicily, and Naples-Foggia.  He is entitled to 4 Bronze Service Stars with his EAME Campaign Medal.

4.  The applicant is not entitled to the Distinguished Unit Citation as he was not a member of the 30th Infantry Regiment when that citation was awarded by War Department General Order number 44-55, for the period 22 January to 6 February 1945.

5.  The applicant has provided no evidence, and there is nothing in the official record, to show that he is entitled to the MOH, DSC, SS, BSM for valor, more than one award of the PH, ARCOM, or AGCM.

6.  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 following awards and decorations; the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service, the Purple Heart, the American Defense Service Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 4 Bronze Service Stars, the World War II Victory Medal, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.

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

BOARD VOTE:  

__gdp___  __eb____  __mvt___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		__George D. Paxson_
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR1999034028	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	20000718	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS	
REVIEW AUTHORITY	DIRECTOR	
ISSUES         1.	107.0000	
2.	123.0100	
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.