ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


	IN THE CASE OF:

	BOARD DATE:  27 August 2019

	DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20190003908


APPLICANT REQUESTS:  on behalf of her father, a former service member (FSM), 
award of the Purple Heart (PH).

APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: 

*	DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record), dated 6 March 2019
*	USA Veterans Administration Certificate of Eligibility, issued 17 March 1971
*	FSM's Certificate of Birth, issued on 5 July 1972 (document is in Spanish)
*	Standard Form 180 (Request Pertaining to Military Records), dated 6 March 
2019
*	Self-author letter, undated
*	DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States)
*	Honorable Discharge Certificate

FACTS:

	1.  The applicant did not file within the three year time frame provided in Title 10, United 
States Code (USC), section 1552(b); however, the Army Board for Correction of Military 
Records (ABCMR) 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's complete military records are not available for review.  A fire 
destroyed approximately 18 million service members' records at the National Personnel 
Records Center in 1973.  It is believed that the applicant's records were lost or 
destroyed in that fire.  However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a 
reconstructed record to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

3.  The applicant states:

   a.	The FSM was assigned to the 65th Infantry Regiment and he received the PH for 
a gunshot wound to his buttock when he was at Pork Chop Hill.

   b.	The FSM's DD Form 214 does not show award of the PH and the paperwork for 
the award was lost in the fire.  His rank on his DD Form 214 shows corporal, but he was 
a captain.

   c.	She would like to bury her father at Arlington National Cemetery and he has been 
sitting in his casket at the funeral home for nearly a month.

   d.	She does not have his medical records because of the Health Insurance 
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.  The FSM had post-traumatic stress disorder 
but never let it stop him.

   e.	She remembers when she was 12 years of age and looking at her father's 
medals, which included a PH medal.

   f.	She is currently 65 years old and do not know what happened to the paperwork 
for the award.

   g.	She believes his PH may have been omitted because her father used the names 
"X____X. X____ X____ XX_____" and "X____ X. X____ X____ XX____" while he was 
in the military.

4.  On 21 March 1951, the FSM was inducted into the Army of the United States.

5.  The FSM was assigned to Company M, 65th Infantry Regiment, Korea.

6.  On 20 December 1952, the FSM was honorably released from active duty.  His 
DD Form 214 shows in:

*	item 3 (Grade Date, Rank and Date of Appointment) – Corporal (Temporary), 
16 June 1952
*	item 29 (Wounds Received as a Result of Action with Enemy Forces) – blank.

7. The FSM records are void of medical documentation showing he incurred an injury 
from hostile forces and his name does not appear on the Korea Casualty Roster.

BOARD DISCUSSION:

1.  The Board carefully considered the applicant’s request, supporting documents and 
evidence in the records.  The Board considered the applicant’s statement, the belief 
that the Soldier’s records were lost in the records center fire, the available record of 
service and the absence of documentation supporting the Soldier’s wounding or rank 
other than Corporal.  The Board found the applicant did not provide any post-service 
medical or administrative documents in support of her claim.  The Board found there 
was insufficient evidence to support a change to the Soldier’s records as requested 
by the applicant.  The Board concurs with the correction stated in the Administrative 
Note(s) below.  

2.  After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board found that 
relief was not warranted.

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:

With the exception of the correction stated in the Adminstrative Note(s) that follow, 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.



			  
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):  The applicant served a qualifying period for award of the 
National Defense Service Medal, which is not listed on his DD Form 214 for the period 
of service ending 20 December 1952.

?
REFERENCES:

1.  Title 10, USC, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military 
records must be filed within three years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice.  
This provision of law also allows the ABCMR to excuse an applicant's failure to timely 
file within the three-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.

ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)	 AR20190003908
	
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