ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 7 January 2019 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20170013592 APPLICANT REQUESTS: Award of the Purple Heart. APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record) * Standard Form 514 (Medical Record - Hematology) * Statement from another individual * Self-authored statement * DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) * Self-written statement FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the three year time frame provided in Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552 (b); however, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records conducted a substantive review of this case and determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file. 2. The applicant states he sustained an injury from a fall into a Punji pit while in Vietnam in or around late November 1968 through early December 1968. He was hospitalized and his leg was so infected with human feces from the Punji stake that he was admitted to the hospital and treated with antibiotics. He feels this injury leads to award of the Purple Heart, and his family feels he deserves it. 3. The applicant provides: a. Standard Form 514, dated 1 December 1968, that lists his name and Service Number. It also lists the unit as Company A, 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry (1/18th Inf). A hand-written note at the bottom of this form states he was actually assigned to 2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry (2/18th Inf). b. Self-authored statement in which he states he received an injury in Vietnam in 1968. He was placed in a hospital as a bed patient and the only thing that he has, that is readable, is a blood test taken on 1 December 1968. He remembers a bombing at their location and a plane dropping flares. It was dark, and they were moving fast to get away. He could not tell there was a pit and he went straight down. He had one Punji stake in the back of his leg and considers himself lucky as there were 51 other stakes in that pit. Other Soldiers helped him out of the pit and the medic put medicine and a bandage on his leg. His leg stiffened the next morning and he returned to the rear via a resupply helicopter. He was taken to the hospital and was seen by a doctor. He could not straighten his leg at the time. He was placed in a ward and was given infection medication. He was released a while later as he was able to walk again, and returned to his unit. c. A statement in the form of a letter from an individual to the applicant that states he does not remember exactly what happened to the applicant but he knows that he was gone from the Company for a while and then returned. The individual also points out that the hospital register card reads the applicant's unit as Company A, 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry when in fact they were assigned to 2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry. 4. Review of his service record shows: a. He enlisted in the Regular Army on 7 April 1967. He served through multiple reenlistments in a variety of assignments. His DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) shows he served in Vietnam: * 25 April 1968 to 6 March 1969; he was assigned to Company A, 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division * 30 September 1970 to 29 September 1971; he was assigned to 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division b. He was honorably retired on 30 June 1987. His DD Form 214 shows he was awarded or authorized: * Meritorious Service Medal * Air Medal * Army Commendation Medal * Army Good Conduct Medal with one silver loop * National Defense Service Medal * Vietnam Service Medal with one silver and one bronze service star * Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon with Numeral 3 * Army Service Ribbon * Overseas Service Ribbon * Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm Unit Citation * Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal * Sharpshooter Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar * Combat Infantryman Badge * Drill Sergeant Identification Badge 5. By regulation, the criteria for an award of the Purple Heart requires the submission of substantiating evidence to verify the injury/wound was sustained in action against an enemy or as a result of hostile action, the injury/wound must have required treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record. 6. There is nothing in several typical sources that shows he was injured or wounded as a result of hostile action: a. His medical records are not available for review with this case. b. Item 40 (Wounds) of his DA Form 20 does not show a combat wound or injury and item 41 (Awards and Decorations) does not list the Purple Heart as an authorized award. c. His records do not contain a Western Union Telegram/Cablegram informing his next of kin of an injury/wound or any Army Adjutant General correspondence regarding an injury. This was a normal notification procedure during the Vietnam War. d. The applicant’s name is not shown on the Vietnam casualty roster. e. A review of the Awards and Decorations Computer Assisted Retrieval System maintained by the U.S. Army Human Resources Command, which is an index of general orders issued during the Vietnam era between 1965 and 1973, failed to reveal any other orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to him. BOARD DISCUSSION: After reviewing the application and all supporting evidence, the Board found that relief was not warranted. Based upon the totality of the evidence presented and found within the service record, The Board determined that there is lack of evidence to grant the Purple Heart. Although the applicant provides a statement from another individual in support of the request, because the statement cannot specifically corroborate what happened, the Board found relief should not be granted. BORAD VOTE: Member 1 Member 2 Member 3 : : : Full Grant : : : Partial Grant : : : Formal Hearing Grant :X X: X: Deny 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 for correction of the records of the individual concerned. ___________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. ADMINISTRATIVE NOTE(S): N/A REFERENCES: 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. 2. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) states the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained while in action against an enemy or 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. Army Regulation 600-200 (Enlisted Personnel Management System), 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 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. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20170013592 4