FRESNO, CA (KMJ) – The Fresno Police Department hold it’s Annual Major Commendation Ceremony, recognizing officers for their accomplishments and acts of heroism.
Officers and their families packed Council Chambers Tuesday, as Police Chief Jerry Dyer spoke of the difficulty of their work responding to 3000 calls a day.
35 officers are being awarded for their extraordinary achievements beyond the normal call of duty, from stopping gun violence to making 500 or more DUI arrests.
Chief Dyer took a moment, recognizing Officer Eloy Escareno and his wife, Maribel, who were recently injured in an accident,
He explained an officer’s devotion to the job, “I must tell you, I’m proud after 39 in years in this profession I would never trade one moment of that 39 years to be in any other profession than to wear this badge, to be side by side with these police officers.”
Click to listen to the report by KMJ’S Liz Kern:
2018 Fresno Police Department Major Commendation Stories
The Latent Print Award recognizes our members for their hard work in lifting essential latent print evidence at crime scenes resulting in the identification of suspects.
To qualify for this award, Officer Hill and Cadet Singh each lifted six prints within a 12 month period resulting in the identification of suspects. These numbers are significant because the more latent prints we collect at crime scenes, the more suspects we will identify, arrest, and prosecute. Historically, every arrest from a latent print “hit” results in another three to four cases solved, and additional suspects identified and apprehended.
For their success in this effort, Officer Christian Hill and Cadet Amandeep Singh will receive the Department’s Bronze Latent Print Award pin.
The “Recovered Firearms Award” was created in an effort to acknowledge and reward our personnel who curb gang members and other criminals from illegally possessing firearms. Without the continued efforts of all personnel to disarm these individuals; the citizens of Fresno would experience many more incidents of gun violence. We may never know the number of homicides that were prevented, including that of officers, without the proactive efforts of officers to keep our streets safe. The following Officers are being recognized for recovering at least 10, but usually many more guns, within a one year period.
Officer Sean Morris and Officer Yessie Hernandez are receiving their 1st awards. Detective Eden Cerda is receiving her 3rd award. Detective Robert Fry is receiving his 5th and 6th awards. And something to truly be proud of, Detective Anthony Vallez, has earned his 6th through 16th awards.
The DUI Recognition Medal is awarded to Fresno Police Officers who arrest 500 or more DUI’s during their career with the Department. It was created in July of 2006 in response to DUI fatalities in our City, and to recognize those officers who have dedicated their career to removing impaired drivers from our streets.
Nationally, drunk driving is the #1 cause of death on our roadways. Over 10,000 people are tragically killed every year because of this preventable crime. Fresno is not immune to these tragedies. Since 2005, 124 people have been killed and 1,333 people have been injured in DUI Collisions in our City.
Officer Josh Pantages is being recognized here today for his outstanding DUI enforcement efforts. Very few officers in the Department will achieve this level of recognition in the area of DUI enforcement. This medal represents many long hours, nights, and weekends in making our streets safer and his efforts cannot be understated.
The Exceptional Performance Ribbon for a Tactical Incident is given for the performance of a unit which results in a significant accomplishment beyond the typical function of that unit.
On September 7th, Southwest District patrol officers, at the request of Sexual Assault Detectives, deployed to locate and arrest a suspect wanted for sexually battering children. The suspect was a sexual predator wanted on multiple felony charges. Detectives feared that the suspect was around children.
When officers went to the house and the suspect came to the door, he immediately charged the officers with a knife. A tazer and bean bag gun had no effect as he continued to threaten the officers and barricaded himself inside. A neighbor informed officers that there were three small children inside, ages 8, 6, and seven months. Officers could tell that the suspect was highly intoxicated and feared that he would hurt the children before they could save them due to the barricaded door. The on-scene field commander requested officers respond with shields and breaching equipment anticipating a hostage rescue.
Sergeant Gebhart assembled the Downtown Policing Unit and after briefing them, a plan was formulated to extract the children from the second-story bedroom window with two Fire Department extension ladders. When the children saw the officers at the window, their faces lit up with relief and they were passed down the ladders through the chain of officers to safety. This happened while the officers at the door continued negotiations with the armed suspect. Just as the children were safe, the suspect appeared at the bedroom window.
The successful execution of this tactical plan drastically de-escalated the incident from a hostage situation to a barricaded suspect who ultimately surrendered to the SWAT Team hours later.
For their quick actions and calculated teamwork in the successful execution of this tactical plan which prevented harm to the innocent children during this standoff, we proudly award Sergeant Michael Gebhart, Officer Adriana Ponce, Officer Drew Vanzant, Officer Mandeep Khela, Officer Timothy Barnett, Officer Joel Sanchez and Officer William McCarty with the Exceptional Performance Ribbon.
The Medal of Merit for Meritorious Service is awarded to members for exceptional performance in other than a police action, which has greatly benefited the City, Department, and/or the law enforcement profession.
Detective Angie Isaak has accomplished much in her 25 years with the Department but her last 16 years have been the most remarkable. Not only has Detective Isaak worked as a Detective during this time, her most significant accomplishment has been leading the Bringing Broken Neighborhoods Back to Life program. This program was created 16 years ago by Chief Dyer, Southwest Fresno Pastors, and other Southwest Fresno community leaders for the purpose of engaging the community.
The Bringing Broken Neighborhoods Back to Life group has seen many sergeants and commanders come and go throughout the years, but the one constant fixture has been Detective Isaak. She has put on approximately 450 weekly community informational meetings, led over 450 community outreach block parties, and has volunteered countless hours on other community policing programs and initiatives. Detective Isaak has also led an effort to improve the community outreach events making them theme based such as education, health, and a job fair. The average attendance at the events has gone up tremendously in both vendors and attendees. For example, a job fair held at the Mary Ellla Brown Center brought in over 2,000 attendees.
Detective Isaak also started Santa’s Village 16 years ago. The original Santa’s Village took place at the Southwest Dressing Station where over a seven day period, kids whom may not otherwise have a Christmas, took a photo with Santa and received a toy. Over the years the location for Santa’s Village has not only taken place in Southwest Fresno but at locations throughout the City. Detective Isaak has led all of the Santa’s Village events and provided a Christmas for over 50,000 kids.
In addition to everything mentioned, Detective Isaak also volunteers her time with other community organizations. She is on the Economic Opportunities Board of Commissioners, the Aspen School Board, and is a part of the California Health Collaborative which focuses on educating youth on substance abuse.
For her innovation, devoted passion, and tireless work on her many projects throughout the Community, we are pleased and proud to present Officer Angie Issak with the Medal of Merit for Meritorious Service.
The Medal of Merit with Valor Medal is “awarded to members who distinguish themselves by bravery or heroism during a police action, which is above and beyond the normal demands of duty.”
This past December 21st, shortly after midnight, officers Robert Miller, Carson Sanders, and Robert McGuire responded to a report of a fire. Officers arrived before Fresno Fire Department, finding black smoke billowing out of the home. Unable to communicate with the residents inside, the officers forced open the front door to encounter more intense thick smoke rolling out against them.
Realizing they couldn’t go in, the officers worked their way around a side-yard in the darkness of night, through even thicker, zero visibility smoke. Hearing a female voice in the rear, Officers Sanders, Miller, and McGuire low-crawled through the smoke, working their way along the side of the house to find an immobilized 71-year-old woman. She was disoriented, inhaling smoke, and couldn’t move due to hip problems. Her hair was singed by the fire. Through these dangerous and potentially deadly conditions, the officers physically picked her up and carried her to safety in front of the home where paramedics were staged.
The woman was transported to the hospital and treated for smoke inhalation. Her 74-year-old husband, a double amputee, was in the house and did not make it out. First Responders on scene who witnessed the Officers crawling through the wall of thick black smoke highly commended their selfless actions, courage and heroism in rescuing this woman.
This is one of so many examples where Police Officers enter dangerous locations to help save the lives of people they don’t even know, putting aside the thought of their own safety in their mission to protect others.
For their courage, bravery and willingness to put themselves in danger to rescue the resident at this burning house, even at peril to themselves, we are very proud to present the Medal of Merit with Valor to Officer Robert Miller, Officer Carson Sanders, and Officer Robert McGuire.
Lifesaving Medals
Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal is “awarded to members whose immediate actions result in the saving of a human life.”
On June 24th last year, at approximately 8:00pm, Officer Brian Freer was working with his K-9 partner when he responded to a call of a victim who was “not breathing”. Upon arrival, he was met by the victim’s boyfriend who told Officer Freer that she most likely had overdosed on Methadone and tranquilizers, and added that she had made some suicidal comments prior to him leaving the apartment for a short time. When the boyfriend returned, he found her unresponsive on the bed and called 911.
Officer Freer immediately observed the victim lying on the bed, and, in checking her vitals, found that she had no pulse, was not breathing, and was cold to the touch. Officer Freer placed her on the floor and immediately began CPR. He performed solo CPR until he was relieved by EMS who took over her care. During transport to St. Agnes, she regained her pulse and breathing and survived this incident.
For his rapid actions to save the life of this woman, we are pleased to present the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal to Officer Brian Freer.
Officer Brian Freer’s 2nd Lifesaving Medal
On a November evening last year, the Fresno Police Department received a 911 call from a female who said she had just found her husband not breathing and turning blue.
Officer Brian Freer arrived within two minutes of the 911 call and was the first emergency responder on scene. He located the 75-year-old male victim lying face down on the ground with no signs of life. Freer immediately started CPR. After several minutes of solo CPR he was joined by members of the Fresno Fire Department and American Ambulance personnel. They continued lifesaving efforts and then transported the victim to Saint Agnes Hospital where he was treated for cardiac arrest and expected to survive the incident.
The victim’s wife expressed the fact that she was very thankful to Officer Freer for his actions to save her husband on this day before Thanksgiving.
For his immediate and steadfast efforts to save the life of this heart attack victim, we are proud to present the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal to Officer Brian Freer.
In July last year, around 6:30pm, Sergeant Rudy Tafoya and Officer Mike Hernandez responded to a report of a subject in a canal at Glenn and Webster Avenues. Upon their arrival, they located a 61 year-old man clinging to a tree branch in frigid, rapidly moving water on the edge of the canal. Due to the speed and temperature of the water, the subject was clearly in a life or death situation.
Sergeant Tafoya acted quickly and retrieved a rope from the trunk of his patrol vehicle. Sergeant Tafoya and Officer Hernandez were able to wrap the rope around the subject’s wrist and were able to hold him in place as they waited for rescue personnel from the Fresno Fire Department.
Upon the arrival of Fresno Fire, a ladder was lowered into the canal; however the subject was unable to access it. Officer Hernandez, along with several Fire Department members, leaned over the protective railing and was able to pull the subject out of the canal to safety where he was immediately attended to by American Ambulance personnel.
After the incident, Fresno Fire Department members on scene expressed that if not for the actions of Sergeant Tafoya and Officer Hernandez, the fate of the subject in the canal would have been profoundly different.
For their rapid intervention and actions to save the life of this man, Sergeant Rudy Tafoya and Officer Mike Hernandez are awarded the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal.
On August 20, 2017 at approximately 10:30am, a parent phoned 911 reporting their daughter was possibly deceased inside their residence. Officers Rodems, Kinney, and Diaz all responded “Code 3” and arrived within three minutes and located the non-responsive victim lying on a bed. Officer Diaz attempted to wake the victim while Officer Rodems conducted an assessment for pulse and breathing. The victim had no heartbeat, was not breathing, and was discolored.
The officers quickly placed the victim on the ground so they could perform CPR. Officer Diaz began chest compressions and Officer Rodems provided rescue breaths. During the performance of CPR Officer Rodems then had Officer Kinney take over providing breaths, due to his prior experience as an EMT, while Officer Diaz continued with chest compressions.
After approximately three minutes of CPR, the victim regained a pulse and began to take shallow breaths. Fresno Fire and American Ambulance personnel arrived and took over providing medical aid.
For their immediate, decisive and well-performed actions to save the life of this woman, we proudly present the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal to Officer Kennan Rodems, Officer Adam Kinney and Officer Michael Diaz.
On the morning of February 21st, this year, officers observed a young man climbing the fence on the Bullard overpass over Freeway 41. The 16-year-old was attempting to commit suicide by jumping off the overpass onto the freeway some 40 feet below. Southbound traffic on the freeway was blocked and Fresno Fire placed an inflatable jump bag across the lanes. Officers were trying to convince the subject to come down.
When the young man saw the bag and that the traffic was stopped, he angrily stood up and began to walk the narrow rail on top of the fence toward the side of the freeway where traffic was still moving. Fresno Fire was unable to get the Jump bag across to the northbound lanes due to the center divider wall and oncoming traffic.
Sergeant Eric Hodge climbed on top of the cement barrier and placed himself between the young man and the unprotected freeway as officers continued to negotiate with the subject, attempting to get him to climb down. He kept angrily yelling at the officers to leave him alone and let him do what he needed to do.
When the young man made his attempt to get past Sergeant Hodge to jump onto the northbound lanes, Hodge was able to grab him by the legs and pull him off the fence onto Bullard. Both of them fell, with Sergeant Hodge breaking the subject’s fall, and because of the elevated position, Hodge received injuries to his back, hand and arm. The young man was so intent on committing suicide that he continued to fight with officers and had to be subdued.
For his patience and well-timed, decisive, and immediate actions that saved the life of this 16-year-old, we are pleased to award the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal to Sergeant Eric Hodge.
On April 2nd, Officers Andrew Espino and Arthur Barragan were dispatched and rolled code-three to a call of a suicidal man. When they arrived, they found the man hanging from a tree in his backyard. The officers quickly took action and cut the victim down from the tree and removed the noose from around his neck. The officers found no pulse and saw that the victim was not breathing. Without hesitation, the officers reverted to their training and began life saving measures.
For over five minutes the officers performed CPR on the victim until he was breathing and a pulse returned. During his ride in the Ambulance his health improved and he was treated at Community Regional Medical Center.
Concerned for the victim, the officers went to the hospital the following day to check on his condition and were pleased that he had regained his vitals.
Because of the immediate, decisive actions of Officer Andrew Espino and Officer Arthur Barragan to save the life of this man, they are proudly presented with the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal.
Officer Espino and Officer Barragan’s 2nd Livesaving Medals.
On June 11 2018, at approximately 6:30 p.m. Officer Andrew Espino and Arthur Barragan were dispatched to a call of a suicidal woman standing on the edge of a railroad bridge. The officers quickly took over the call and requested all the proper resources. A negotiator was on his way, the railroad company was asked not allow trains by, and they had traffic blocked. Fresno firefighters were arriving and preparing to set up their airbag to help catch her.
When the woman saw this, she began moving closer to the edge and farther from the officers in preparation to jump. There was no time for hesitation, Officer Espino and Barragan lunged forward and grabbed on to her as she took a step off the edge to what would have been a fifty foot drop.
Officer Espino and Barragan took action despite concern for their own safety and successfully prevented the woman from jumping off the railroad bridge.
As the woman received medical attention, she wanted to thank the officers for saving her life and getting her the help she needed.
For their heroic and immediate actions that saved the life of this woman, we are pleased to award Officer Andrew Espino and Officer Arthur Barragan with their second Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal today.
On April 20, at approximately 9:30 at night, Dispatch received a call regarding a subject who fell into the canal near Van Ness and Bremer.
Officer Kelly Wilkes responded and was the first to arrive on the call. In the darkness, Officer Wilkes was able to locate the victim, who was fully immersed in the canal water. The water was moving swiftly and carrying the victim downstream. As the man continued to float down the canal, rather than becoming another victim by jumping into the water, Officer Wilkes ran along the canal bank and provided location updates.
At one point, Officer Wilkes struck a low hanging tree branch, which knocked him to the ground and caused three deep lacerations to his forehead. Officer Wilkes regained his footing and continued to run along the canal bank, continually giving updates as to the location of the subject in the water.
Emergency Medical Services and Fresno Fire eventually arrived and used swift water rescue equipment to pull the victim out of the canal transport him to the hospital where he was treated for the onset of hypothermia.
For his immediate and decisive actions leading to the lifesaving rescue of this victim, we award the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal to Officer Kelly Wilkes.
On May 30, 2018, Officers Voelkel and Plymale were dispatched to a call where the caller reported her sister was suicidal and driving around Fresno. The victim told her sister she was going to cut herself and take an overdose of pills.
Operating on minimal information, officers researched and obtained the address of the victim and went to her apartment. They spoke to her roommate and determined the victim was not there, however, the officers checked the enclosed garage where the victim usually parks and they heard a vehicle running inside.
The officers forced open the overhead door and discovered the victim unconscious inside the vehicle. They extracted the victim from the car and removed her from the garage where there was an overwhelming amount of heat and exhaust fumes.
Once in the fresh air, the victim was breathing and regained consciousness, but she was extremely disoriented. Officers also recovered several bottles of prescription medication from the vehicle.
For their immediate and decisive actions that saved the life of this woman, we are pleased to award the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal to Officer Edmund Voelkel and Officer Evan Plymale.
On June 18th at 5:00 in the afternoon, Fresno Police officers Ricardo Loza and Jared Garcia were dispatched to a child drowned in a pool. Conferencing with dispatch and EMS, the mother stated she was turning purple, not breathing and stated they could not get her out of the pool. The call was updated to say EMS was attempting to give CPR instructions over the phone. As the officers arrived, the family carried the small child outside through the front door of their home and into the waiting arms of Officer Loza.
The child was limp, non-responsive and blue around the lips and nostrils. Officer Loza took action and laid the child on the ground and checked for a pulse. The child’s pulse was faint and she was not breathing. Officer Loza gave two rescue breaths, but felt resistance so he readjusted the child’s head and pressed on her stomach to clear any obstructions. The child began to spit up large amounts of fluid. Officer Loza then turned the child to her side in a recovery position while ensuring she was able to breath, still had a pulse, and her cervical spine was protected. Officer Loza maintained this position until EMS was on scene to transport the child to emergency.
The responding medical personnel on scene were so impressed by the actions of Officer Loza that the American Ambulance Operations Manager e-mailed Officer Loza’s supervisor stating,”…the actions of the officer had a significant impact in a positive outcome in the patient’s condition. I believe this officer deserves recognition for providing exemplary service to preserve life.”
For his quick and knowledgeable actions to save the life of this little child, we are proud to award the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal to Officer Ricardo Loza.
On July 3rd, at approximately 10:30p.m., Fresno Police Officers were dispatched to a suicidal subject. The caller stated he was speaking with his mother, who was making suicidal statements such as she had “made arrangements” and that she was “sorry.”
When Officer Raul Herrera and Officer Jonathan Isaak arrived and entered the residence, they located the victim lying on the floor in an awkward position. It appeared as if she had just collapsed and fallen onto the floor. Officers Herrera and Isaak quickly acted by laying her flat and checking for vitals. They discovered she was not breathing and had no pulse. The officers started CPR on the victim and continued their lifesaving actions for several minutes until being relieved by EMS.
The woman was transported to St. Agnes Hospital where her condition was stable with a good prognosis for recovery.
For their immediate, decisive and well-performed actions to save the life of this victim, we proudly present the Fresno Police Department Lifesaving Medal to Officer Jonathan Issak and Officer Raul Herrera.
On July 29, 2018, at almost 10:30 at night, Officer John Veres and Officer Cary Weigant were assigned as a double patrol unit in the Northeast Policing District. They were dispatched and responded to a residence for a call of a male who had hanged himself in the closet. When they arrived, Officer Veres and Officer Weigant checked the victim for signs of life. The victim was not breathing and had no pulse.
The Officers began CPR and continued for about five minutes until EMS arrived and took over. Officer Veres continued to help EMS perform CPR, and eventually they were able to find a pulse and transport the victim to the hospital.
For their lifesaving actions that saved the life of a fellow human being, we are pleased to award the Fresno Police Department’s Lifesaving Medal to Officer John Veres and Officer Cary Weigant.
