II 110th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3283 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES July 17, 2008 Mr. Tester (for himself, Mr. Baucus, and Mr. Enzi) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs A BILL To award a congressional gold medal to Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow, in recognition of his especially meritorious role as a warrior of the Crow Tribe, Army Soldier in World War II, tribal historian, and author.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow Congressional Gold Medal Act.

2.

Findings

Congress finds that— (1)born November 27, 1913, near Lodge Grass on the Crow Indian Reservation, Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow is the oldest living Crow Indian veteran; (2)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow is recognized as a warrior by his tribe for completing all 4 actions of counting coup while serving in the United States Armed Services during World War II in Germany, France, and Italy; (3)he earned his first coup by leading a war party, a detail of soldiers, under fire, to retrieve dynamite to use for attacking German guns; (4)he earned his second and third coups by touching the first fallen enemy and stealing his weapon, and when he met a German soldier on a street in France, Dr. Medicine Crow knocked down the soldier and kicked his rifle away; (5)he earned his fourth coup by entering an enemy camp and stealing their horses by sneaking into a farm where German SS officers were holed up for the night, stealthily entering a barn and corral, mounting a horse and, with a Crow war cry, running the horses toward the Americans as the fireworks started behind him and soldiers started shooting; (6)upon returning from World War II, Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow was the first member of the Crow Tribe to earn a master's degree; (7)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow has since received 3 honorary PhDs, from the University of Southern California, University of Montana, and Rocky Mountain College; (8)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow has lectured throughout the world on topics such as his masters thesis, “The Effects of European Culture Contact Upon the Economic, Social, and Religious Life of the Crow Indians”; (9)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow has been a longtime teacher at Little Big Horn College in Crow Agency, Montana; (10)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow is a noted tribal historian and has authored several books on Crow culture, including “Handbook on Crow Indian Treaties & Laws”, “Medicine Crow, a Crow Chief”, “From the Heart of the Crow Country”, “Whiteman Runs Him, Custer’s Last Scout”, and “Counting Coup—Becoming a Crow Chief on the Reservation and Beyond”; (11)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow was appointed tribal historian and anthropologist by the Crow Tribal Council in 1948; (12)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow is a renowned figure who is included in narratives of the West in major museums around the world; (13)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow was awarded the Montana Historical Society Trustees’ award for contributions to Montana history in 1992; (14)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow was awarded the Jeff Dykes Memorial Award for Notable Contributions to Western Affairs by the Potomac Corral of the Westerners in 2000; (15)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow was awarded the Montana Governor’s Tourism Award in 2005; (16)on June 25, 2008, near the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Custer Battlefield Museum in Garryowen, Montana, Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow will be awarded the French Legion of Honor Chevalier medal and the Bronze Star for his service in the United States Army during World War II; (17)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow has been nominated for the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Nation's highest civil award, reserved for contributions to the country's culture, history, and security; and (18)Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow has proven himself to be a highly accomplished role model by— (A)serving the Crow Tribe and the United States with valor and heroism in World War II; (B)successfully integrating his past; and (C)educating others about his cultural heritage.

3.

Congressional gold medal

(a)

Presentation authorized

The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on behalf of the Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration of Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow, in recognition of his especially meritorious role as a warrior of the Crow Tribe, Army Soldier in World War II, tribal historian, and author. (b)

Design and striking

For purposes of the presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the Secretary) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.

4.

Duplicate medals

The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3, under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses, and the cost of the gold medal.

5.

Status of medals

(a)

National medals

The medals struck pursuant to this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code. (b)

Numismatic items

For purposes of section 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items.

6.

Authority to use fund amounts; proceeds of sale

(a)

Authority To Use fund amounts

There are authorized to be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund, such amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs of the medals struck pursuant to this Act. (b)

Proceeds of sale

Amounts received from the sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 4 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.