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thedrifter
04-09-07, 09:28 AM
MarCent clarifies rules for Bronze Star
By Gidget Fuentes and John Hoellwarth - Staff writers
Posted : April 16, 2007

New guidance from the top commander of Marines in U.S. Central Command aims to clear up exactly what types of actions merit a Bronze Star versus a Meritorious Service Medal, which has been the subject of confusion among Marines.

Lt. Gen. Jim Mattis, commander of Marine Corps Forces-Central Command, issued a message March 27 to clarify the awarding rules for his subordinate commanders, said Lt. Col. Sean Gibson, MarCent spokesman in Tampa, Fla.

Mattis’ amplifying guidance does not apply to the Bronze Star with the combat distinguishing device.

The guidance gets to the heart of the difference between the Bronze Star and the Meritorious Service Medal: the need to show increased risk in order to rate the Bronze Star.

Both may be awarded to Marines operating in a combat zone for performing meritorious service, according to the Marine Corps’ awards manual.

The Meritorious Service Medal can be given for meritorious service while deployed or as an end-of-tour award in garrison during peace time. There isn’t a requirement for a Marine to be collecting imminent danger pay at the time of the service, which is provided to service members in designated war zones.

But to rate a Bronze Star, a Marine must be getting IDP at the time of the actions, and this must be noted among the justifications in the submission for the award, according to the manual.

It’s the part about imminent danger pay that bares clarification, said Lee Freund, head of the Corps’ Awards Branch in Quantico, Va.

“You have to get the IDP to get the Bronze Star, but you don’t have to get the Bronze Star if you get IDP,” he said.

At times, “commanders believed that the receipt of IDP means they were qualified for the Bronze Star Medal,” he said. “On those occasions, the commander of MarCent frequently made the determination that the Meritorious Service Medal was the appropriate award.”

Gibson explained how Mattis’ guidance adds to the criteria:

“To be considered for the Bronze Star Medal, recommendations must clearly demonstrate that the duties performed placed the individual at increased risk of exposure to the effects of enemy hostilities,” he wrote in an e-mail response to questions.

So when they submit an individual for the award, commanders must explain and demonstrate the “increased risk of exposure.”

In short: Take away that increased risk of exposure, and a Marine is more likely to get a Meritorious Service Medal even if he is receiving IDP.

MarCent’s recent message did not reflect any new policy change by Mattis, Freund noted.

Mattis “determined it was appropriate to put this philosophy in writing for the benefit of the subordinate commanders so they could clearly see what kind of information he needed,” Freund said. “It was clarifying the criteria he uses to determine what rates the MSM and what rates the Bronze Star.”

With the clarifying guidance, Mattis is “helping to ensure the combat nature of the Bronze Star Medal is retained,” Freund added. “It keeps a commander from submitting an award without submitting enough substantiating information.”

The other criteria for receiving the Bronze Star are still in effect. The award is for Marines who perform meritorious service under any of these conditions:

• While engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States.

• While engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing force.

• While serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in armed conflict against an opposing force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.

As of March 5, 1,431 Marine officers and 255 enlisted Marines had received the Bronze Star for meritorious service in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Marine Corps statistics. Awards of the Bronze Star with the combat distinguishing device for valor are fewer, with 368 awarded to officers and 431 to enlisted Marines so far.

Ellie