PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:           19 March 2002
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2001064025

	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. William Blakely		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Shirley L. Powell		Chairperson	
	Mr. Stanley Kelley		Member	
	Mr. Elzey J. Arledge, 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, in effect, that his military records be corrected to show he was awarded the Purple Heart (PH). 

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that his separation document (DD Form 214) does not show the PH he was authorized for being wounded in action in Korea on 21 September 1952. 

4.  The applicant’s military records show that he entered the Army on 2 February 1951 and that he continuously served on active duty for 1 year and 11 months until being honorably separated, in the rank of private first class, on 31 December 1952.  

5.  The DD Form 214 issued to the applicant on the date of his separation confirms that he served overseas for 1 year, 4 months, and 23 days and that he earned the following awards during his active duty tenure:  Combat Infantryman Badge; Korean Service Medal with 1 bronze service star; and United Nations Service Medal.  Item 29 (Wounds) of this document shows that he received a flesh wound to his left knee as a result of action with enemy forces on 
21 September 1952 in the Korean Theater of Operations.

6.  Section 8 (Wounds Received through Enemy Action) of the applicant’s service record contains an entry that verifies that the applicant received a flesh wound to the left knee as a result of action with enemy forces on 21 September 1952.  In addition, the applicant’s record is void of any derogatory information or any indication that he was ever disqualified from receiving the Army Good Conduct Medal (AGCM) by any of the unit commanders for which he served during his tenure on active duty.  

7.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the PH 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.  Chapter 4 contains guidance on the award of the AGCM and it states, in pertinent part, that this award is authorized to individuals who distinguish themselves by their conduct, efficiency and fidelity during a qualifying period of active duty enlisted service.  For the first award only, a period of 1 or more years is a qualifying period if it is awarded at the termination of a period of Federal military service.  Although there is no automatic entitlement to the AGCM, disqualification must be justified, and current practice requires that unit commanders provide written notice of non-favorable consideration and allow individuals the opportunity to respond/rebut the reason for denial of the award.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant’s DD Form 214 and service record both confirm that he received a flesh wound to the left knee as the result of action with enemy forces, while serving as a private first class in Korea on 21 September 1952.  Thus, the Board concludes the applicant should be awarded the PH.  

2.  Lacking derogatory information in his OMPF or a specific disqualification by any of the unit commanders for which he served, the Board concludes it would be appropriate to award the applicant the first award of the AGCM based on his completing a period of qualifying service upon his separation from active duty on 31 December 1952.

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 awarding the individual concerned the Purple Heart for being wounded in action on 21 September 1952, while serving as a private first class in Korea; and by awarding him the first award of the Army Good Conduct Medal for his honorable active duty service from 2 February 1951 through 31 December 1952; and by providing him a corrected separation document that includes these awards. 

BOARD VOTE:  

__SLP__  __SK __  __EJA___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		         __Shirley L. Powell__
		             CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001064025	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	2002/03/19	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR . . . . .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	(GRANT)	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	107.00	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.