MISSION VIEJO : 2 Sheriff’s Deputies Get Medal of Valor

Two Orange County sheriff’s deputies who are residents of Mission Viejo were awarded the Medal of Valor at an awards luncheon recently in Costa Mesa.

Deputy Steve Wilson received his award for off-duty actions taken May 9 at a local high school, where he was playing tennis.

During the game, one of his tennis partners collapsed. Recognizing that the man was possibly suffering a heart attack, the deputy told his friends to call an ambulance.

Despite initial difficulty at opening his friend’s tightly clenched jaws, Wilson finally was able to perform rescue breathing for about 15 minutes until emergency help arrived. His friend required a quintuple-bypass operation but survived the heart attack.

“There was no doubt in the doctors’ minds that had Deputy Wilson not acted as quickly and correctly as he did,” said Sheriff’s Lt. Dick Olson, “the victim would have died before paramedics arrived on the scene.”

The other local honoree, Sgt. William Voltin, was lauded for heroics performed while on duty with Deputy Wayne Quint on Sept. 19 in Midway City. Voltin and Quint confronted a man who had attacked a group of people with a machete, and who possibly had a hostage with him in a mobile home.

The two officers tried to calm the man, said sheriff’s officials. However, the man began advancing with the machete as the two officers drew their guns and retreated.

The armed individual came within five feet of the officers before they were able to persuade him to put down the machete. The man was taken into custody without further incident.