BOARD DATE: 29 June 2017 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20160001059 BOARD VOTE: ________ ___x_____ ____x____ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ____x____ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION 2 Enclosures 1. Board Determination/Recommendation 2. Evidence and Consideration BOARD DATE: 29 June 2017 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20160001059 BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by: a. awarding him the Purple Heart for wounds received as a result of hostile action in the Republic of Vietnam on 28 June 1968 and b. adding award of the Purple Heart to his DD Form 214 for the period ending 10 October 1969. ______________x___________ CHAIRPERSON I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. BOARD DATE: 29 June 2017 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20160001059 THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE: 1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any). 2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests that he be awarded the Purple Heart. 2. The applicant states he was wounded in the Republic of Vietnam and believes his DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) should show he was awarded the Purple Heart. 3. The applicant provides a copy of DA Form 1594 (Daily Staff Journal or Duty Officer's Log) for 28 June 1968 (three pages). CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice. This provision of law also allows the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse an applicant's failure to timely file within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. While it appears the applicant did not file within the time frame provided in the statute of limitations, the ABCMR has elected to conduct a substantive review of this case and, only to the extent relief, if any, is granted, has determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file. In all other respects, there are insufficient bases to waive the statute of limitations for timely filing. 2. The applicant was inducted into the Army of the United States on 11 October 1967. He completed his initial entry training and was awarded military occupational specialty 11B (Light Weapons Infantryman). 3. The applicant's records contain a DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record), which shows in: a. item 31 (Foreign Service), he served in Vietnam from on or about 25 March 1968 through on or about 23 March 1969; b. item 38 (Record of Assignments), he served with Company D, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Division, during his service in Vietnam; c. item 40 (Wounds), the absence of an entry that indicates he was wounded in action; and d. item 41 (Awards and Decorations), the absence of an entry that indicates he was awarded the Purple Heart. 4. The applicant was honorably released from active duty on 10 October 1969 and transferred to the U.S. Army Reserve Control Group (Annual Training). His DD Form 214 shows he completed 2 years of total active service, including 11 months and 29 days of foreign service. His DD Form 214 does not show he was awarded the Purple Heart. 5. The applicant's available records do not contain orders for the Purple Heart, nor do they contain any documentation that indicates he was treated for wounds or injuries he sustained as a result of hostile action during his service in Vietnam. 6. A review of the Vietnam casualty roster, compiled by the Adjutant General's Office Casualty Division, does not list the applicant's name as a casualty. 7. A review of the Awards and Decorations Computer-Assisted Retrieval System, an index of general orders issued during the Vietnam era between 1965 and 1973 maintained by the U.S. Army Human Resources Command, failed to reveal any orders that confirm the applicant was awarded the Purple Heart. 8. The applicant provided a Duty Officer's Log for 28 June 1968 from the S-2/S-3, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, which shows the following entries (items numbered 16 and 23 are highlighted): a. Item Number 16 at 1140: "Rpt fm Bn CO: D Co rpt 2 KIA, 6 WIA, 27 Jun 68, 3 WIA 28 Jun 68 YD 3963; KIA R____ & J____, L____ T." b. Item Number 23 at 1500: "Fm Bde: Readout of Entry #16; D Co KIA: R____ and J____; WIA: W____ V____, M____, C____, S____, H____, T____, S____ [inferred to be the applicant], H____, C____, A____." REFERENCES: Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained in action against an enemy or as a result of hostile action. Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment (not merely examination) by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record. Award of the Purple Heart may be made for wounds treated by a medical professional other than a medical officer provided a medical officer includes a statement in the service member's medical record that the extent of the wounds was such that they would have required treatment by a medical officer if one had been available to treat them. DISCUSSION: 1. There is no documentation in the applicant's available records that shows he was awarded the Purple Heart. 2. He contends he should be awarded the Purple Heart; however, neither his available records nor the Vietnam casualty roster provide any evidence that shows he was wounded during his service in Vietnam. 3. The governing Army regulation provides that in order to be awarded the Purple Heart, a wound must have resulted from hostile action, the wound must have required treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record. 4. He provided a Duty Officer's Log for 28 June 1968, which lists 11 last names (only) as members having been wounded in action. The applicant's last name is listed as one of the 11 names. 5. The Board must determine if the Duty Officer's Log provides sufficient evidence that the applicant meets the criteria for award of the Purple Heart for a wound or wounds incurred as a result of hostile action in the Republic of Vietnam on 28 June 1968. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings AR20150000953 Enclosure 1 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20160001059 2 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Enclosure 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20160001059 4 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Enclosure 2