ANAHEIM : 3 Police Officers to Get Medals of Valor

Three city police officers who courageously performed their jobs in the face of danger will receive Medal of Valor awards at the department’s annual awards and retirement banquet tonight.

The department will also honor six retirees whose combined service in Anaheim totals 170 years.

Assemblyman Tom Umberg (D-Garden Grove) and Orange County Supervisor William G. Steiner will be among the 400 guests expected at the private banquet at the Disneyland Hotel.

Anaheim Police Lt. Ray Welch said the Medal of Valor is the department’s highest honor and is awarded to officers who show exceptional bravery while facing peril or great bodily injury.

The recipients of the award are helicopter pilots Rob DePartee and Paul Dohmann and Officer David Watson.

DePartee and Dohmann are receiving the award for their efforts during a sniper attack in Huntington Beach in February. During the incident, a sniper fired more than 150 shots at the pilots as they assisted Huntington Beach’s SWAT team.

Watson is being honored for his part in catching three armed men after they allegedly robbed a Fountain Valley bank and an Anaheim store in February. During the arrest, Watson fatally shot one of the suspected bandits, who was pointing a gun at him.

“Although there is a tremendous amount of pride and honor in all the awards that will be presented, certainly there is an even greater honor to the Medal of Valor,” Welch said.

The retirees being honored tonight are Sgt. Gordon Blair, Sgt. Mike Briley, Sgt. Jim George, Officer Joe Karns, Detective Carl Martin and Sgt. Ed Pierson.