22 Deputies Are Honored for Bravery

One off-duty sheriff’s deputy pulled a man from his burning overturned truck. Three investigators cracked five unsolved murders. A handful of deputies prevented a sex offender from making a jailhouse escape.

They were among 22 deputies in the Orange County Sheriffs-Coroners Department who were honored Tuesday for their bravery and quick thinking, for giving service beyond the call of duty. The honorees were chosen by the department’s 3,800 employees.

“Every one of them makes Orange County the place to live,” Sheriff Michael S. Corona said during noontime ceremonies in Anaheim. “They are the best of the best.”

Blue and red lights framed the pictures of the honored deputies hung on the walls at the Disneyland Hotel, where about 700 people gathered for the 13th annual Medal of Valor Presentation Luncheon.

Deputy Guy Pepe, who is assigned to the North Operations Division and works at the Orange County Transportation Authority, was honored with the medal of valor, an award bestowed for his heroism.

Last Aug. 14, Pepe shot and killed a “three strikes” felon in Stanton after the man climbed a fence, waited for Pepe and lunged at him with a hunting knife. He remains shaken by the experience, which he called the worst in his 13-year career with the department.

“The whole incident takes it out of you,” Pepe said after Corona draped the medal around his neck. “But when you see your bosses and peers want to recognize the efforts, that’s something to be proud of.”

The purple heart medal, given to an officer who suffered serious injury or death on the job, was awarded to Steven Parsons, who died last June 24, when a 78-year-old Laguna Woods woman ran a red light and struck him. The district attorney’s office filed manslaughter charges against the woman this month. Parson’s widow accepted his medal in a private ceremony.

Other recipients included:

* Medal of courage, Deputy Claudio Fabris;

* Medals for lifesaving to deputies Chris Wax, Jack Songer, Scott Vanover, Ricardo Jurado, Kevin White, Larry Packard and Mike Ellis;

* Medals of merit, Lt. Steve Bishop and investigators Brian Heaney, Felipe Villalobos, Larry Pool, Robert Stoffel, Rocky Castellano, Adam Moore, Miguel Sotelo, Bruce Frazee, Jeffrey Smith, Jonathan Daruvala and Kenneth Olszewski.