PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:     

	BOARD DATE:           13 June 2002                   
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2001064788

	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. Edmund P. Mercanti		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Celia L. Adolphi		Chairperson	
	Ms. Barbara J. Ellis		Member	
	Mr. Donald P. Hupman		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 he was wounded in combat and should be entitled to the Purple Heart.

4.  In support of his request he submits a AGO Form 241A-1, Casualty (or Nonbattle) Report, dated 29 October 1952.  In that report it is stated that the applicant sustained flesh wounds to his face and left lower leg on 27 October 1952 from an enemy grenade explosion.  The applicant also submits his separation physical examination, dated 16 May 1956, in which the surgical removal of fragments lodged in the applicant’s left mandible (lower jaw) in Korea was noted.

5.  The applicant’s military records could not be located and are presumed to have been destroyed by the fire at the records repository in 1973.  The following information was derived from documents provided by the applicant himself and Surgeon General Office (SGO) files.

6.  He was inducted on 20 September 1951, was promoted to the rank of corporal, and was honorably discharged on 13 June 1953 to enlist in the Regular Army.  The DD Form 214, Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States, he was issued at the time of his enlistment in the Regular Army shows that he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Korean Service Medal with 1 bronze service star, and the United Nations Service Medal.  Item 29 of that DD Form 214, wounds received as a result of action with enemy forces, has “Flesh, left lower leg.  27 Oct 52.”  The applicant remained on active duty in the Regular Army, was promoted to sergeant, and was honorably released from active duty on 28 May 1956.

7.  A health record research project, commonly referred to as the "SGO Files", involved transposing the hospital admission card data from the periods of World War II and the Korean conflict onto magnetic tape.  In 1988 the National Research Council made these tape files available to the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC).  Searches of these files show that the applicant was wounded in the chin and heel from grenade fragments as a result of enemy action and hospitalized for those wounds on 28 October 1952.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for wounds 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 by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

9.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides that the Good Conduct Medal 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. Current practice requires that the commander provide written notice of nonfavorable consideration and permits the individual to respond.  

10.  On 20 August 1999, the Department of Defense approved the acceptance and wear of the Korean War Service Medal to eligible US veterans of the Korean War, or their surviving next of kin.  The medal is provided at no cost to veterans.  The US Air Force has been designated the lead agency to receive and distribute the medals.

11.  The Korean War Service Medal is available to veterans of the Korean War. However, the determination of eligibility and the issuance of the award are handled by the US Air Force.  The applicant should provided a copy of his DD Form 214 (and DD Form 215, if appropriate) together with a request that he be issued the award to the US Air Force Personnel Center, 550 C Street West, Randolph AFB, Texas 78150-4714.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  It is evident that the applicant was wounded in action and was entitled to a Purple Heart.

2.  It would also appear, from the applicant’s grade, length of service and characterization of service, that he should have been awarded the Good Conduct Medal for the period 20 September 1951 to 13 June 1953.

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:

a.  showing that the individual concerned was awarded the Purple Heart; and

b.  showing that he was awarded the Good Conduct Medal for the period 20 September 1951 to 13 June 1953.

BOARD VOTE:  

____cla__  ___bje__  ____dph_  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		_________Celia L. Adolphi_____________
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001064788	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20020613	
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.