Countywide : Sheriff’s Group to Honor 16 for Courage, Dedication

Sixteen members of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department will be recognized Wednesday for their service to the community at the Medal of Valor luncheon in Costa Mesa.

The seventh annual event honors law enforcement officials who solved difficult cases or displayed unusual courage in the line of duty, organizers said.

Nine deputies will receive Medal of Courage awards. They are: Brad Warner, who was involved in a shootout with an armed suspect; Dave Tilstra, who was forced to make an emergency landing with the department’s helicopter; Richard Johnson, who protected a group of inmates during a jail riot; Ron Dunlap, who apprehended an armed murder suspect; Joseph Balicki, who chased a suspect who had shot at other officers; Roland Chacon and Lee Trujillo, who captured a suspect armed with a shotgun; Jim Avant, who helped with a shooting incident while off duty, and John Stokes, who exchanged fire with a suspect after observing a shooting incident between two cars.

Sheriff’s investigator Leo Vandor will receive a Medal of Merit for his investigation of a 1992 double homicide.

Six Sheriff’s Department employees will receive Medals of Lifesaving awards. They are Community Services Officer Susie Cabrera, for resuscitating an infant; Special Officer John Cervinski for a rescue attempt; Sgt. Russ Moore for a rescue on Christmas night; Deputy Tom Slayton for reviving an accident victim, and deputies Brad Warner and Don Schramm for aiding a heart attack victim.

The luncheon begins at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Westin South Coast Plaza Hotel, 666 Anton Blvd., Costa Mesa. For more information, call (714) 647-1818.