PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:            8 January 2002
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2001063279

	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. Hubert S. Shaw, Jr.		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Luther L. Santiful		Chairperson	
	Mr. Roger W. Able		Member	
	Mr. Terry L. Placek		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 correction of his records to show award of the Purple Heart.

3.  The applicant states that his discharge shows that he was wounded on 18 May 1951, but his records do not show that award and he has never received his award of the Purple Heart.  In support of his application, he submitted a copy of his DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States) and a letter from a former Secretary of the Army forwarding the applicant’s award of the Prisoner of War Medal.

4.  The applicant’s military records were lost or destroyed in the National Personnel Records Center fire of 1973.  Records available to the Board were obtained from alternate sources and show he entered active duty on 21 September 1950.  His DD Form 214 shows that he served overseas for 2 years, 7 months and 8 days; however, the specific dates of his service in Korea are not listed in his records.  The applicant was honorably separated from active duty on 3 November 1953.

5.  The applicant’s DD Form 214 shows in item 29 (Wounds Received As A Result of in Action With Enemy Forces) the entry, “Shrapnel Wound-Rt [right] Hand-Korea-18 May 1951.”  However, his discharge does not show the Purple Heart as an authorized award in item 24 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized).

6.  The applicant’s DD Form 214 also does not show award of the Prisoner of War Medal.

7.  In addition to the letter, dated 19 May 1988, from the Secretary of the Army forwarding award of the Prisoner of War Medal to the applicant, there is a hospital admission record which shows that the applicant was admitted to Tripler Army Hospital on 16 August 1953 from status as a former prisoner of the enemy. The dates of the applicant’s capture and release are not stated in the records available to the Board.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, 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.

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, for award of the POW Medal.  The regulation states that the POW Medal was authorized on 8 November 1985 and is awarded to individuals who in past armed conflicts were taken prisoner or held captive.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant’s discharge document shows that he was wounded in action on 18 May 1951 in Korea.  Therefore, he is entitled to award of the Purple Heart and correction of his records to show this award.

2.  Evidence of record shows that the applicant was awarded the Prisoner of War Medal; therefore, he is entitled to correction of his records to show this award.

3.  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 showing the individual concerned was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in action on 18 May 1951 in Korea and was awarded the Prisoner of War Medal.

BOARD VOTE:  

__TLP___  __LLS__  __RWA__  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		___Mr. Luther L. Santiful__
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001063279	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	YYYYMMDD	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR . . . . .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT PLUS	
REVIEW AUTHORITY	MR SCHNEIDER	
ISSUES         1.	107.0000.0000	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.