14 U.S.C. § 2744 — Life-saving medals
submitted 77 years ago by ch. 393 to r/title-14-COAST-GUARD · 292 words · no verdicts yet
The Secretary may award gold or silver Life-saving Medals for qualifying rescues or attempted rescues, subject to location and repeat-award rules.
(a) Under regulations, the Secretary* may award a gold or silver Life-saving Medal to anyone, including Coast Guard personnel, who rescues or tries to rescue someone from drowning, shipwreck, or another danger on the water. (1) A rescue or attempt made at the rescuer’s risk of death and showing extreme, heroic daring earns gold. (2) A rescue not distinguished enough for gold but showing exceptional effort deserving recognition earns silver. (b) The event must occur in United States waters or waters under United States jurisdiction. Outside those waters, either person must be a United States citizen or be from a vessel or aircraft owned or operated by United States citizens. (c) A person may receive no more than one gold and one silver medal. A later qualifying act earns a bar of the same class instead of another medal, and each additional act may earn another bar. The medals and bars may be awarded after death.
The Secretary* may, under regulations prescribed by him, award a Life-saving medal of gold or silver to any individual, including personnel of the Coast Guard, who rescues or endeavors to rescue any other individual from drowning, shipwreck, or other peril of the water in accordance with the following provisions:
if such rescue or attempted rescue is made at the risk of one’s own life and evidences extreme and heroic daring, the medal shall be of gold;
if such rescue or attempted rescue is not sufficiently distinguished to deserve the medal of gold, but evidences the exercise of such signal exertion as to merit recognition, the medal shall be of silver.
In order for an individual to be eligible for the Life-saving Medals the rescue or attempted rescue must take place in waters within the United States or subject to the jurisdiction thereof, or if the rescue or attempted rescue takes place outside such waters, one or the other of the parties must be a citizen of the United States or from a vessel or aircraft owned or operated by citizens of the United States.
No individual shall receive more than one gold medal and one silver medal; but any individual who has received or may hereafter receive a gold or silver medal and who again performs an act which would entitle him to receive another medal of the same class may be awarded, in lieu of a second medal of the same class, a gold or silver bar, as the case may be, to be worn with the medal already bestowed, and for every such additional act, an additional bar may be awarded. Medals and bars in lieu thereof, authorized by this subsection, may be awarded posthumously.
Source credit: (Aug. 4, 1949, ch. 393, 63 Stat. 536, § 500; Pub. L. 94–546, § 1(31), Oct. 18, 1976, 90 Stat. 2521; renumbered § 2744, Pub. L. 115–282, title I, § 116(b), Dec. 4, 2018, 132 Stat. 4226; Pub. L. 116–283, div. G, title LVXXXV [LXXXV], § 8505(a)(36), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4749.)
- 1949Enacted · Act of Aug. 4, 1949, ch. 393 · 63 Stat. 536
- 1976Amended · Pub. L. 94-546 · 90 Stat. 2521
- 2018Amended · Pub. L. 115-282 · 132 Stat. 4226
- 2021Amended · Pub. L. 116-283 · 134 Stat. 4749
A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by ch. 393 on 1949-08-04.
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