The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously) to Second Lieutenant (Infantry) John Thomas Owens, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with 315th Infantry Regiment, 79th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, near Verdun, France, 4 November 1918. After locating three machine-gun positions. Lieutenant Owens put one of them out of action with an automatic rifle by killing the gunners and forcing the carriers to abandon the gun. He was killed by machine-gun fire while reorganizing his company after a local counterattack.