Officer Prevents Woman’s Fall From 7th-Story Ledge

A woman who threatened to jump from the top of a Glendale Galleria parking lot early Monday morning held police at bay for more than 40 minutes before being brought down, officials said.

The 31-year-old Burbank woman, whose name was withheld, remained hospitalized Wednesday.

“She spoke mainly of generalities--of failures in her life, how she’s disappointed people and how the devil has manipulated her life and caused her to hurt people,” said Glendale Police Sgt. Ron Insalaco, who was able to reach the woman and bring her down despite her threats to jump.

After climbing onto the seventh-floor ledge near her, Insalaco, an 11-year veteran, inched closer as the two talked. He eventually reached out to grab her when he was five feet away.

Police Sgt. Kirk Palmer applauded Insalaco’s split-second thinking.

“I knew he had to reach across the railing, which I knew was a considerable risk,” he said. “I was very concerned for his welfare--there was no net, there’s nothing to keep them from getting seriously injured.”

Insalaco played down his actions, saying it was all in a line of duty.

“I felt she let (her guard) down enough. . . . It was just a judgment call.”