PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            31 OCTOBER 2002                  
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2002076736

	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	
	Ms. Deborah L. Brantley		Senior Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Curtis L. Greenway		Chairperson	
	Ms. Regan K. Smith		Member	
	Mr. Donald P. Hupman, 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 his military records be corrected to reflect award of the Purple Heart and Bronze Star Medal.  He states that he was wounded in September 1944 but never received the Purple Heart.  He also notes that he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal but it was never entered on his separation document.  In support of his request he submits a copy of his separation document and a copy of a 1951 letter from the Office of The Adjutant General indicating that he had been awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his "exemplary conduct in ground combat…during the Northern France Campaign…."

3.  The applicant's records were apparently lost or destroyed during the 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis.  Information contained herein was reconstructed entirely from documents provided by the applicant.

4.  The applicant entered active duty on 9 October 1940 and arrived in the European Theater of Operations in September 1941.  While overseas he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge and, according to the 1951 letter from the Office of The Adjutant General, the Bronze Star Medal on 25 August 1944.  The award was confirmed in orders issued by the 10th Infantry Regiment.

5.  There were no medical records available to the Board.  However, item 34 (wounds received in action) on the applicant's War Department Adjutant General Office Form 53-55 (Enlisted Records and Report of Separation Honorable Discharge) indicates the applicant was wounded on 12 September 1944 while in France.  There is no indication he was ever awarded the Purple Heart.

6.  The applicant returned to the United States in August 1945 and on 4 October 1945 was honorably discharged as a result of demobilization.  

7.  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.

8.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 also provides, in pertinent part, that the Bronze Star Medal is awarded for heroism and for meritorious achievement or service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The Bronze Star Medal 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 such 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 Bronze Star Medal is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized either badge for service during 

World War II.  Awards of the Bronze Star Medal, based on the Combat Infantryman Badge or Combat Medal Badge, are commonly referred to as a conversion award.

9.  A review of Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1 (Unit Citation and Campaign Participation Credit Register) notes the 10th Infantry Regiment, the unit to which the applicant was assigned at the time he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal was awarded the French Croix de Guerre for the period 9 through 
15 September 1944 and granted occupation credit in Germany.  As such he is entitled to the foreign decoration and the Army of Occupation Medal with "Germany" clasp.

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part, for award of the World War II Victory Medal (WWII Victory Medal).  It is awarded for service between 7 December 1941 and 31 December 1946, both dates inclusive.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  Although there are no medical records available, the Board is satisfied that the entry in item 34 of the applicant's separation document is sufficient to conclude that he was wounded as a result of hostile action during World War II and as such, should be awarded the Purple Heart.  The wound would have occurred during the period the applicant's unit was awarded the French Croix de Guerre, further confirming the likelihood that the applicant was wounded as a result of hostile action.

2.  The evidence also confirms that the applicant was awarded the Bronze Star Medal in August 1944 for his actions during the Northern France Campaign.  His records should be corrected accordingly.

3.  The Board also notes that the applicant was awarded a Combat Infantryman Badge during World War II and as such, is entitled to a Bronze Star Medal as a conversion award based on that badge.  His records should be corrected accordingly.

4.  The evidence indicates that the applicant was a member of the 10th Infantry Regiment while in August 1944 when he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal.  The Board believes it is probable that he was assigned to that unit until his July 1945 when he departed Europe enroute to the United States.  That unit was awarded the French Croix de Guerre and an Army of Occupation Medal with "Germany" clasp.  It would be appropriate, and in the interest of justice to correct the applicant's records to reflect those awards, in addition to the World War II Victory Medal.

5.  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:

a.  by awarding the individual concerned the Purple Heart for wounds sustained on 12 September 1944;

b.  by showing that he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal in August 1944 for his actions during the Northern France Campaign;

c.  by awarding him a Bronze Star Medal as a conversion award based on his award of the Combat Infantryman Badge; and

d.  by showing that he is entitled to the French Croix de Guerre, the Army of Occupation Medal with "Germany" clasp, and the World War II Victory Medal.

BOARD VOTE:  

__CLG __  __RKS__  __DPH __  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		___Curtis L. Greenway_____
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2002076736	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20021031	
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.