Jim,
MY QUESTION PERTAINS TO THE PURPLE HEART.
MY FRIEND AND I WERE BOTH IN VIETNAM, 101ST AIRBORNE 1969. WE WERE COMBAT INFANTRY AND WE WERE GUARDING A FIRE BASE FOR A ARTILLERY UNIT. ONE NIGHT WE HAD A MAD MINUTE WHERE YOU CAN SHOOT AS MUCH AMMO AS YOU CAN IN ONE MINUTE. THE PURPOSE OF THE MAD MINUTE WAS TO KILL OR WOUND THE ENEMY. AT THE TIME WE WERE NOT UNDER ATTACK BY THE ENEMY. THERE WAS THREE OF US IN A FOXHOLE AND I HAD M79 GRENADE LAUNCHER.I SHOT ONE OF THE ROUNDS OFF AND IT HIT A TREE BRANCH FAIRLY CLOSE TO US AND SOME OF THE SHRAPNEL CAME BACK AND HIT MY FRIEND IN THE NECK. THERE WAS BLOOD ALL OVER. THE DOCTORS DID NOT TAKE THE SHRAPNEL OUT BECAUSE IT WAS TO CLOSE TO SOME NERVES. HE STILL HAS THE SHRAPNEL IN HIS NECK.
YEARS AGO HIS SON SENT ME A FORM TO FILL OUT FOR THE PURPLE HEART BUT IT WAS TURNED DOWN. HE WAS TRYING TO GET THE PURPLE HEART FOR HIS FATHER. I DON'T REMEMBER WHICH FORM IT WAS. THE QUESTION IS CAN HE GET THE PURPLE HEART.
Reply:
The term "mad minute" originated with the British before World War 1. It was used in target competition to determine who could accurately place a number of rounds into a target in a timed event. Mad minute was used in Vietnam to describe short bursts of intense weapons fire to flush out enemy troops. An intense salvo of any weapons may be called a mad minute.
Purple Hearts are generally awarded because of an injury that is caused by direct enemy action. The Purple Heart isn't awarded for things like diseases caused by Agent Orange, trench foot, PTSD, hearing loss, or other illnesses that may be sustained in a combat zone or elsewhere. Although some of those conditions may cause severe health problems or even death, they weren't caused by direct enemy action. Purple Hearts aren't awarded for self inflicted wounds whether intentional or accidental.
A wound caused by accidental friendly fire (your shrapnel) may or may not be eligible for the Purple Heart award. The command must decide if there was an enemy engaged at the time and if the American soldiers were under fire.
The issue here may be that the mad minute scenario wasn't always used as it was supposed to have been. I've been told often that similar events happen because the soldiers involved were blowing off some steam and shooting everything in sight. The event was less related to enemy combat than it was to a fireworks display.
The military and the VA are always aware that there are accidents that we may be involved in during combat that can cause harm. Those events don't often rise to the level of a Purple Heart award.
Your tell me that the "mad minute" was to kill or wound the enemy. Then you tell me that you weren't under attack by the enemy. That's a problem.
You may have answered your question "can he get the Purple Heart" when you said he applied, "BUT IT WAS TURNED DOWN". Once the DoD branch of service has made that decision, appeal can be difficult.
If you believe that you and your friend were actively engaging the enemy at the time of his injury, and if the medical treatment he received was documented in any of his records, you can initiate an appeal. If you can prove that you received enemy fire or otherwise were directly engaging the enemy in a combat situation, you probably have a good case.
He should apply for a VA disability benefit for that shrapnel he carries in his neck. The scar may be enough to make him eligible for a service connected disability rating. A simple physical exam and an x-ray will probably be all that it takes to establish a disability compensation rating. That could help persuade the DoD to make an award of a Purple Heart. Keep it in mind that VA doesn't make decisions about Purple Hearts or any other military awards. Application to VA will only be for disability compensation.
Your best bet is to contact your Congressperson or a Senator who will guide you through the process and advocate for him.