Richard Real Bird is an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and former chairman of the Crow Nation of

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

. Real Bird served as chairman of the

Crow Nation The Crow, whose Exonym and endonym, autonym is Apsáalooke (), also spelled Absaroka, are Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans living primarily in southern Montana. Today, the Crow people have a federally recognized tribe, th ...

for two terms, from 1986 until 1990. Real Bird was convicted of

fraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain, or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compens ...

and

embezzlement Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

while in office. He lost his 1990 re-election bid to Crow Nation secretary

Clara Nomee Clara Mae White Hip Nomee (May 12, 1938 – January 31, 2012) was an American politician and tribal leader who served as the Crow Chairperson, Chairwoman of the Crow Nation of Montana for five-terms from 1990 to 2000. Nomee was the first woma ...

, who succeeded him.

References

Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Chairpersons of the Crow Nation Native American leaders 20th-century Native Americans People convicted of fraud People convicted of embezzlement {{NativeAmerican-politician-stub