Docket No: 1964-19 Ref: Signature date Dear This letter is in reference to your application for correction of your naval record pursuant to Title 10, United States Code, Section 1552. After careful and conscientious consideration of the entire record, the Board for Correction of Naval Records (Board) found that the evidence submitted was insufficient to establish the existence of probable material error or injustice. Consequently, your application has been denied. Although your application was not filed in a timely manner, the Board found it in the interest of justice to waive the statute of limitations and consider your application on its merits. A three-member panel of the Board (Board), sitting in executive session, considered your application on 18 November 2019. The names and votes of the members of the panel will be furnished upon request. Your allegations of error and injustice were reviewed in accordance with administrative regulations and procedures applicable to the proceedings of this Board. Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of your application, together with all material submitted in support thereof, relevant portions of your naval record, and applicable statutes, regulations, and policies, and the relevant Advisory Opinion (AO) of 18 September 2019. You enlisted in the Marine Corps and began a period of active duty on 14 October 1999. On 13 October 2004, while deployed to with you were in a vehicle convoy that was struck by an IED. You continued your honorable service in the Marine Corps until you were discharged on 28 December 2010, upon completion of your required service obligation. In your petition to the Board, you request a Purple Heart Medal and a Combat Action Ribbon for injuries sustained in the 13 October 2004 IED blast. You state you have given the Marine Corps everything that it wanted beyond the normal information provided in support of awards requests, and yet the awards have been denied without reason. You provide medical notes dated 30 December 2015, from a staff psychiatrist which reflect that you have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and a traumatic brain injury (TBI). The Department of Veterans Affairs has rated you at 40% for the TBI. You also provide personal statements in support of your application from other Marines who were in the convoy when it was struck by the IED. As part of the review process, Headquarters Marines Corps, Military Awards Branch reviewed your request, and issued an AO dated 18 September 2019. The AO concluded that there is inadequate documentation to validate your entitlement to the Purple Heart. The AO specifically noted that you did not seek medical treatment immediately following the blast, and without a medical officer’s diagnosis and prognosis immediately after the blast, the severity of your injury cannot be determined. Furthermore, the AO noted that the IED detonated at or about the location of the first vehicle, and that you were in the third vehicle. There are no casualty reports for Marines killed or wounded in either the lead vehicle or the second vehicle, calling into question the severity of any injuries sustained by you at the time. With regard to the Combat Action Ribbon, the AO stated that Combat Action Ribbons are authorized for personnel who are directly exposed to IED blasts but noted that none of the Marines identified as being in the lead vehicle or the second vehicle of the convoy have been awarded the Purple Heart Medal nor were there any casualty reports submitted for the date of the event. The AO recommended that your request for the Combat Action Ribbon, like the Purple Heart Medal, be denied. The AO was provided to you on 1 October 2019, and you were given 30 days in which to submit a response. When you did not provide a response within the 30-day timeframe, your case was submitted to the Board for consideration. The Board carefully reviewed your application, and took into consideration the statements of fellow Marines who were in the convoy with you at the time the IED hit. The Board also weighed your personal account and the recommendation of the AO. Ultimately, the Board concurred with the AO and found that, absent treatment by a medical officer immediately or closely after the IED blast, the severity of your injury from the October 2004 blast cannot be ascertained. Without certainty about the severity of any injury sustained in October 2004 during the vehicle convey, the Board determined that a Purple Heart Medal was not warranted. Likewise, the Board concurred with the AO on the issuance of the Combat Action Ribbon. The Board relied heavily on the fact that Marines from the vehicles ahead of yours, which were closer to the detonation of the IED, did not receive Combat Action Ribbons from the blast. The Board applied the presumption of regularity and determined if a Combat Action Ribbon was not awarded to those Marines or to you and others your vehicle at the time of the IED blast, then the award is likely not warranted. It is regretted that the circumstances of your case are such that favorable action cannot be taken. You are entitled to have the Board reconsider its decision upon the submission of new matters, which will require you to complete and submit a new DD Form 149. New matters are those not previously presented to or considered by the Board. In this regard, it is important to keep in mind that a presumption of regularity attaches to all official records. Consequently, when applying for a correction of an official naval record, the burden is on the applicant to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice.