ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 1 April 2019 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20170013059 APPLICANT REQUESTS: reconsideration of his previous denial for the awards of the Purple Heart and the Combat Infantryman Badge. APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: The applicant only submitted his DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record). FACTS: 1. Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number AR20110004099 on 16 August 2011. 2. On 28 June 1968, the applicant was inducted into the Army of the United States. He completed basic combat and advanced individual training and was awarded military occupational specialty 11B (Light Weapons Infantryman). 3. The applicant was assigned to Company D, 5th Battalion, 46th Infantry in the Republic of Vietnam from 1 April 1968 - 25 June 1968. He participated in two campaigns. 4. Item 40 (Wounds) of the applicant DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) does not contain any entries indicating he was wounded in action. 5. Army Regulation (AR) 600-200 (Enlisted Personnel Management System), chapter 9 of the version in effect at the time, stated that a brief description of wounds or injuries requiring medical treatment that were received through hostile or enemy action, would be entered in item 40 (Wounds) of the DA Form 20. 6. Item 41 (Awards and Decorations) of the applicant's DA Form 20 does not show the award of the Purple Heart or the Combat Infantryman Badge. 7. On 28 June 1968, the applicant was released from active duty. He completed 1 year, 11 months, and 23 days of active service that was characterized as honorable. His DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) does not show the awards of the Purple Heart or the Combat Infantryman Badge. 8. There are no orders in the applicant's Military Personnel Records Jacket (MPRJ) that show he was awarded the Purple Heart or the Combat Infantryman Badge. 9. The applicant's service medical records were not available for review and he is not listed on the Vietnam casualty roster. 10. AR 672-5-1 required substantiating evidence to verify that a wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record. 11. There is no evidence the applicant served in active ground combat in Vietnam. 12. AR 600-8-22 (Military Awards) states the Combat Infantryman Badge is awarded to infantry officers and to enlisted and warrant officer persons who have an infantry MOS and served in active ground combat while assigned or attached to an infantry unit of brigade, regimental, or smaller size. 13. A review by U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC) of the Awards and Decorations Computer-Assisted Retrieval System (ADCARS), an index of general orders issued during the Vietnam era between 1965 and 1973 maintained by the Military Awards Branch of HRC, failed to reveal any orders awarding the applicant the Purple Heart. BOARD DISCUSSION: After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board determined that relief was not warranted. The Board found insufficient documentary evidence to meet the following standard for awarding the Purple Heart, “Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.” Additionally, the Board found insufficient evidence to show that the applicant was ever awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge or that he ever served in active ground combat, so the eligibility requirements for that award were not met. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 : : : GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING X X X DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20110004099, dated 16 August 2011. However, prior to closing the case, the Board noted the administrative notes below by the analyst of record and the Board recommended those changes be made to more accurately depict the military service of the applicant. 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. ADMINISTRATIVE NOTE(S): A review of the applicant's records show he is authorized the following awards and they should be added to his DD Form 214: * Vietnam Service Medal with 2 bronze service stars * Marksman Marksmanship Badge with Auto Rifle Bar - Headquarters (HQ), 3rd Training Brigade, Fort Jackson, SC Special Orders (SO) Number 190, 31 October 1966 * 2nd Class Gunner (now known as Marksman) Marksmanship Badge with Machine Gun Bar - HQ, 3rd Training Brigade, Fort Jackson SO Number 196, 9 November 1966 * Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm Unit Citation - Department of the Army General Order Number 8, dated 1974. REFERENCES: 1. AR 600-200, chapter 9 of the version in effect at the time, stated, in pertinent part, that a brief description of wounds or injuries (including injury from gas) requiring medical treatment that were received through hostile or enemy action, including those requiring hospitalization would be entered in item 40 of the DA Form 20. This regulation further stated that the date the wound or injury occurred would also be placed in item 40. 2. AR 672-5-1 (Military Awards), then in effect, prescribed Army policy, criteria, and administrative instructions concerning individual and unit military awards. The Purple Heart was awarded to any member of an Armed Force or any civilian national of the United States who while serving under competent authority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services had been wounded, killed, or who had died as a result of 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 by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record. 3. AR 600-8-22 states the Combat Infantryman Badge is awarded to infantry officers and to enlisted and warrant officer persons who have an infantry MOS. They must have served in active ground combat while assigned or attached to an infantry unit of brigade, regimental, or smaller size. Appendix V of U.S. Army Vietnam (USARV) Regulation 672-1 (Decorations and Awards) states that during the Vietnam Era the Combat Infantryman Badge was awarded only to enlisted individuals who held and served in MOS 11B, 11C, 11D, 11F, 11G, or 11H. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20170013059 0 3 1