IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 10 July 2020 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20180010892 APPLICANT REQUESTS: reconsideration of his previous request to be awarded the Purple Heart. APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * Self-authored letters * Kaiser Permanente letter and medical records * Corona Vet Center letter * SF 89 (Report of Medical History) * Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) letter * Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABMCR) Docket Number AR20060010296 * DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) * Photos FACTS: 1. Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the ABCMR in Docket Number AR20060010296 on 6 March 2007. 2. The applicant states: a. His record speaks for itself. He served his country with honor, respect, and all of his trust. He would never claim something that never happened to him because this would be dishonoring his brothers who were left behind, and he could never live with himself. All of his injuries were caused by the fact he was blown off of that bunker. For more than 50 plus years, he has lived with severe pain in his back, neck and hands. Read the doctors’ report on his back and neck surgery. Also note the shrapnel in his hands and feet. Where do you think he sustained the injuries? b. He does not know how to make the Board believe him. This is the truth. The pictures speak for themselves. First, the cast placed on his hand was not because of his old fracture, but because the swelling from his infection and the cuts from the shrapnel. What more can he say? 3. A review of the applicant's official records shows the following: a. On 13 February 1968, the applicant was inducted into the Army of the United States. b. The applicant's DD Form 214 shows he served in Vietnam from 12 July 1968 – 6 July 1969. c. DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record), item 40 (Wounds), is void of an entry. d. On 12 February 1970, the applicant was honorably released from active duty. He completed 2 years of net active service. e. The applicant's name is not listed on the Vietnam casualty roster. f. A review of the Awards and Decorations Computer Assisted Retrieval System (ADCARS) 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 orders for the Purple Heart pertaining to the applicant. g. On 13 July 2006, the applicant petitioned the Board to be awarded the Purple Heart. h. On 6 March 2007, the Board denied the applicant's request citing no evidence in his record and he failed to provide any evidence which showed he sustained wounds or injuries as a result of hostile action, that he was treated by medical personnel for those wounds, and treatment was made a matter of official record. 4. The applicant provides: a. A letter to the VA wherein he sought compensation from the VA due to his post- traumatic stress disorder, and alcohol use. He also described a combat situation in which he heard popping sounds, he was told to get down, he recalled starting to jump, and then had ringing in his ears, a bloody nose, and was yelling to find out if he was okay. Whatever hit the bunker blew him off the top. His right hand was bleeding and his fingers were cut. His boot had a piece of shrapnel that cut his left foot. He did not know how many days later it was, but shortly thereafter, his foot became infected. The cuts in his hand were also bad. Most of all his back and neck had the worst pain. The pain was unbearable. During his tour in Vietnam, he spent a great deal of time in the hospital. To this day, much has not changed. Physically he was a mess. b. Self-authored letters to the Board wherein the applicant states: (1) He received the denial of his Purple Heart due to the fact that there was no documentation of his injuries from any hospital or when he was out in the field. He sent the Board members a letter describing his situation and what had transpired that day and evening when on bunker guard. Again, he submits a copy of the original letter, and included is the new evidence concerning his case. But first, he would like to state one thing. For many years he felt guilty asking for his Purple Heart because he felt what happened to him was not enough compared to his brothers he left behind. But again, his family, friends, and his therapist/counselor, who is a Vietnam vet, encouraged him to. The Board has more than enough evidence, such as pictures and doctor's letters related to surgery related to his case, where there is no coincidence pertaining to his hands, feet, back and hearing. Read the first letter he sent the Board. While out in the field, he cared for his injuries, and when infection set in, he cured his shrapnel wounds with Seagram's 7 whiskey and mud and wrapped his hands with socks. His hands were swollen because of infection not because of any broken bones. As a matter of fact, it was an old fracture. He told the doctor this. His feet were the same thing, infected and swollen. All of his injuries occurred at the same time. (2) Fifty plus years have gone by, yet day in and day out, he continues to live with the memories, the good ones and the bad ones that rip at your heart and torment your mind so severely that to describe them is impossible. Every day he has felt, did he do enough, did he perform to the best of his ability while in the service to his country? Why his brothers and friends and not him he has asked? There has been an empty space in his heart and mind and he has asked many times, why God? He guesses he is one of many Vets that has to deal with this problem. Yes, he earned his Purple Heart. Why does he feel it was not enough? He does not mean as far as awards, he means as far as saving a life or two. His pain inside and outside is very real and so severe that he has dealt with for more than fifty years. This is him after Vietnam. c. Kaiser Permanente letter and medical records showing the applicant had a posterior cervical fusion with titanium plates placed. A handwritten note stating this is the result of what transpired in Vietnam while pulling bunker guard. d. Corona Vet Center letter that states, in the second paragraph, the applicant has been notified by the Department of the Army that his military health records as well as photographs show he meets the criteria for a Purple Heart for having received wounds in action in the Republic of South Vietnam in 1968. e. SF 89 showing the applicant had an expiration term of service physical, and it lists he had ears, nose, and throat problems; a history of broken bones; foot trouble; and back trouble. f. VA letter wherein the applicant states his primary condition was "blown off the top of a bunker in military service." g. Photos of the applicant identified with arrows pointing to himself. He shows himself with other service members. He wore a dressing on his left hand while carrying ice, a dressing on his right hand, and his left and right foot. 5. See applicable reference below. BOARD DISCUSSION: 1. After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board found the requested relief is not warranted. 2. The Board noted that the criteria for award of the Purple Heart require substantiating evidence to verify that a wound was the result of hostile action and required treatment by medical personnel. The medical treatment must also have been made a matter of official record. The Board found insufficient independent evidence confirming the applicant was wounded as a result of hostile action, such as statements from fellow Soldiers who witnessed his injuries or service medical records created at the time of the injury. The Board determined the evidence in this case does not meet the criteria for award of the Purple Heart. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 : : : GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING : : : DENY APPLICATION ? BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20060010296, dated 6 March 2007 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. REFERENCES: Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) in effect at the time, 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. Chapter 9 of the version in effect at the time, stated a brief description of wounds or injuries requiring medical treatment received through hostile or enemy action, including those requiring hospitalization would be entered in item 40 (wounds) of the DA Form 20. This regulation further stated that the date the wound or injury occurred would also be placed in item 40. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20180010892 5 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1