IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 8 September 2021 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20200009589 APPLICANT REQUESTS: * reconsideration of his previous request for correction of his DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States) to add the Medal of Honor * as a new issue, correction of his DD Form 214 to show his rank as a corporal (CPL) and his unit of assignment as 27th Infantry Regiment APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: Reconsideration Letter 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 AR20160015457 on 16 September 2019. 2. The applicant states a. He feels it was discrimination that he was not brought in to discuss and document his battlefield duties and give his testimony to the events that would lead to his award recommendation. He should have been present to give his testimony, and if his Commander was also not present, then he feels he is guilty because he is responsible for recording the incident and providing a detailed narrative of his action while serving in Korea when Lieutenant General Matthew Ridgeway was present in front of 9 witnesses, and honored him for saving his life and his four lieutenants. b. In June of 1952, the last month of combat, Lieutenant Colonel [Unnamed], Commander who made the report in front of the 27th Infantry Regiment gave the recommendation to promote him to Corporal. In 1953, he was honorably discharged as a Corporal of the United States Army. How is there no documentation of his battlefield actions or how he came to be a Corporal? How is there not a report that he saved the 27th Infantry Regiment? He went above and beyond in his sacrifices while serving his country in the Korean War. He had courage as he saved the lives of the highest ranking officer present as well as his lieutenant and the lives of his fellow Soldiers in the 27th Infantry Regiment. This led to his success in defeating the enemy. He discovered 53 years later that his DD Form 214 release in 1953 was confidential. c. In March 2007, he went to investigate missing files and documents that he had turned in back in 1960 to the K__ County Veterans Service Office. He had not yet received a response at that time. He spoke to Mr. JD who informed him that he was a captain and knew military law. He said that he could not give him any forms to apply for commendation unless it was recorded on his DD Form 214. He said that whatever the Armed Forces write is their final decision and cannot be changed and that he had to follow their laws. This means that they put a stop to any information he needed per his request. For many years he was struggling, searching, for his missing documents. The decision was made by [Name] to complete his DD Form 214 and he put a stop to all inquiries and any information he might have received. He feels this is discrimination. 3. Regarding the Medal of Honor, the applicant's request for this award remains premature. As indicated in the previous Record of Proceedings, Army Regulation (AR) 600-8-22 (Military Awards) states, except for award recommendations submitted in accordance with the provisions of Section 1130, Title 10, United States Code (10 USC 1130), each recommendation for an award of a military decoration must be entered administratively into military channels within 2 years of the act, achievement, or service to be honored. An award recommendation will be considered to have been submitted into military channels when it has been signed by the initiating officer and endorsed by a higher official in the chain of command. Based on the applicant's records and the evidence he submitted, it does not appear he was recommended for or awarded the Medal of Honor. Title 10 USC 113 0 was previously explained. The applicant has not utilized this statutory process to request award of the Medal of Honor. Therefore, the issue of the Medal of Honor will not be discussed further in this Record of Proceedings. 4. The applicant's complete military records are not available to the Board for review. A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members' records at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973. It is believed that his records were lost or destroyed in that fire. However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case. 5. Review of the applicant's available service records shows: a. He was inducted into the Army of the United States and entered active duty on 18 July 1951. He held military occupational specialty 1745 (Light Weapons Infantryman). b. He completed 1 year and 9 months of active service, of which, 11 months and 8 days of which was Foreign Service. c. He was honorably released from active duty on 28 April 1953 and transferred to the Enlisted Ready Reserve. His DD Form 214 shows in: * Block 3 (Grade, Rate or Rank and Date of Appointment) name), "Cpl (T) (Corporal, Temporary), 3 June 1952 * Block 27 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations, and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized), the Korean Service Medal with one bronze campaign star, United Nations Service Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, and one overseas service bar * Block 28 (Most Significant Unit of Assignment) Company B, 63rd Infantry Regiment, Fort Ord, CA d. He previously provided a Report of Accidental Injury of an incident that states in May or June 1952, while assigned to 25th Infantry Division, 27 Infantry Regiment. Item 9 (Full Description of how the Accident occurred) states they were in route to front lines, moving in trucks going uphill they were told to jump out. The truck they were in had already lost control and was rolling rapidly downhill. They all jumped out. He hit the road and was unable to use his left leg and fight foot because of sharp pain. He was unable to walk for a month. e. In February 2010, the U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC), Military Awards Branch responded to his request for the Medal of Honor, indicating that until they receive a completed request with all the required documentation they are unable to respond to his Congressman. The Military Awards Branch verified the awards the applicant was entitled and provided him a corrected DD Form 215. The Medal of Honor was not among the awards. f. On 2 March 2010, HRC issued him a DD Form 215 (Correction to DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) that corrected his name and added the below awards. Republic of Korea - Korean War Service Medal, Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation, and National Defense Service Medal. 6. By regulation (AR 635-5), the DD Form 214 is a summary of the Soldier's most recent period of continuous active duty. It provides a brief, clear-cut record of all current active, prior active, and prior inactive duty service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge. * Item 3, for enlisted personnel, enter the rank and date of rank * Item 28, most significant assignment, enter the last unit, or similar element, to which assigned for duty rather than the element of which the individual was a part while moving to a transfer processing activity BOARD DISCUSSION: 1. The Board noted the applicant's reconsideration for the award of the Medal of Honor. However, as he has not exhausted the statutory process in accordance with 10 USC 113 0, the Board did not consider that portion of his request. 2. The Board did consider applicant's request to correct his DD Form 214 to show his rank as a corporal (CPL) and his unit of assignment as 27th Infantry Regiment. His DD Form 214 reflects a temporary promotion to corporal as denoted by "(T)" and his unit of assignment as the 27th Infantry Regiment. Based on the documentation available for review, there is insufficient evidence to grant the applicant's request. He was not permanently promoted to CPL and not formally assigned to 27th Infantry. 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 :XXX :XX XX: 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 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. REFERENCES: Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents), in effect at the time, prescribed the separation documents that must be prepared for Soldiers upon retirement, discharge, or release from active duty service or control of the Active Army. It established standardized policy for preparing and distributing the DD Form 214. a. The DD Form 214 is a summary of the Soldier's most recent period of continuous active duty. It provides a brief, clear-cut record of all current active, prior active, and prior inactive duty service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge. The information entered thereon reflects the conditions as they existed at the time of separation. b. The general instructions stated all available records would be used as a basis for preparation of the DD Form 214. The specific instructions for Item 3 for enlisted personnel, enter the rank and date of rank, indicate of permanent or temporary; and for Item 28, most significant assignment, enter the last unit, or similar element, to which assigned for duty rather than the element of which the individual was a part while moving to a transfer processing activity. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20200009589 1 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1