Distinguished Intelligence Cross

Distinguished Intelligence Cross
Distinguished Intelligence Cross
Awarded for	"For a voluntary act or acts of extraordinary heroism involving the acceptance of existing dangers with conspicuous fortitude and exemplary courage."
Country	United States of America
Presented by	Central Intelligence Agency
Eligibility	Employees of the Central Intelligence Agency
Precedence
Next (lower)	Distinguished Intelligence Medal
Related	National Intelligence Cross, Distinguished Service Cross, Navy Cross, Air Force Cross

The Distinguished Intelligence Cross is the highest decoration awarded by the United States Central Intelligence Agency. It is given for "a voluntary act or acts of extraordinary heroism involving the acceptance of existing dangers with conspicuous fortitude and exemplary courage". Only a handful of people have been awarded this medal in the history of the agency, most posthumously. As a consequence, it is one of the rarest awards for valor in the United States.^[1]^{[page needed]}

The cross is the agency's equivalent of the military's Service Cross, i.e., Navy Cross, Army Distinguished Service Cross, Air Force Cross.^[2]^[3]^{[failed verification]} The agency has two awards for valor; the other is the Intelligence Star, which is analogous to the military's Silver Star.^[4]^[5]

Known recipients

Leo F. Baker, posthumously for the Bay of Pigs invasion^[6]
William F. Buckley
John T. Downey^[7]
Richard Fecteau^[8]
Wade C. Gray, posthumously for the Bay of Pigs invasion^[9]
James Monroe, CIA paramilitary officer during Vietnam War ^[10]
Thomas W. "Pete" Ray, posthumously for the Bay of Pigs invasion^[11]
Riley W. Shamburger, posthumously for the Bay of Pigs invasion^[9]
Greg Vogle, paramilitary officer and CIA trailblazer^[12]^[13]
Molly Huckaby Hardy, posthumously for the 1998 United States embassy bombings in Nairobi^[14]
David N. Tyson, for actions during the Battle of Qala-i-Jangi^[15]

References

^ The very best men: four who dared, the early years of the CIA, by Evan Thomas, published by Simon and Schuster, 1996.
^ "Retired CIA Officers Receive Distinguished Intelligence Cross — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Archived from the original on 2014-04-01.
^ "CIA Medals: FACTBOOK ON INTELLIGENCE".
^ Bush at War, Bob Woodward, Simon and Schuester, 2002, page 317.
^ Gup, Ted (2000). The Book of Honor: Cover Lives and Classified Deaths at the CIA.
^ Leo F. Baker
^ "Cold War arrest of US spies offers lesson for Iran diplomacy". Retrieved 2013-12-30.
^ "Cold War arrest of US spies offers lesson for Iran diplomacy". Retrieved 2013-12-30.
^ ^a ^b "Pete Ray, Leo Baker, Riley Shamburger, Wade Gray - CIA". www.cia.gov. Retrieved 2022-08-12.
^ "CIA at war" (PDF). www.cia.gov. November 27, 2023. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-06-14.
^ LATimes.com - Bay of Pigs: the Secret Death of Pete Ray
^ "The CIA honored the officer who saved Hamid Karzai's life". Newsweek. 18 September 2017.
^ Ian Shapira (2021-10-28) [2017-09-18]. "The CIA acknowledges the legendary spy who saved Hamid Karzai's life — and honors him by name". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.^{[please check these dates]}
^ "20th Anniversary of the US Embassy Bombings in East Africa — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Archived from the original on 2018-04-02.
^ Harnden, Toby, "First Casualty: The Untold Story of the CIA Mission to Avenge 9/11". Little, Brown, 2021. p. 310-311

[1] The very best men: four who dared, the early years of the CIA, by Evan Thomas, published by Simon and Schuster, 1996.

[2] "Retired CIA Officers Receive Distinguished Intelligence Cross — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Archived from the original on 2014-04-01.

[3] "CIA Medals: FACTBOOK ON INTELLIGENCE".

[4] Bush at War, Bob Woodward, Simon and Schuester, 2002, page 317.

[5] Gup, Ted (2000). The Book of Honor: Cover Lives and Classified Deaths at the CIA.

[6] Leo F. Baker

[7] "Cold War arrest of US spies offers lesson for Iran diplomacy". Retrieved 2013-12-30.

[8] "Cold War arrest of US spies offers lesson for Iran diplomacy". Retrieved 2013-12-30.

[:0-9] "Pete Ray, Leo Baker, Riley Shamburger, Wade Gray - CIA". www.cia.gov. Retrieved 2022-08-12.

[10] "CIA at war" (PDF). www.cia.gov. November 27, 2023. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-06-14.

[11] LATimes.com - Bay of Pigs: the Secret Death of Pete Ray

[12] "The CIA honored the officer who saved Hamid Karzai's life". Newsweek. 18 September 2017.

[13] Ian Shapira (2021-10-28) [2017-09-18]. "The CIA acknowledges the legendary spy who saved Hamid Karzai's life — and honors him by name". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.^{[please check these dates]}

[14] "20th Anniversary of the US Embassy Bombings in East Africa — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Archived from the original on 2018-04-02.

[15] Harnden, Toby, "First Casualty: The Untold Story of the CIA Mission to Avenge 9/11". Little, Brown, 2021. p. 310-311

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