10-29-13
On October 29, 2013, 13 members of the Crescenta Valley Sheriff's Station were honored by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department with their annual "Medal of Valor" awards luncheon, held at the Quiet Cannon in Montebello.
Deputy Tai Plunkett was awarded the highest award with the "Medal of Valor".
On November, 21, 2012, Deputy Plunkett was off duty refueling his car at a gas station in Burbank, when he saw a woman being attacked by a man with a knife. Deputy Plunkett, who was unarmed at that time and disregarding his own safety, approached the suspect kicking him several times in the head causing the suspect to end his attack on the woman. The victim involved suffered over 20 stab wounds and cuts and was transported to a local hospital. She was expected to make a full recovery.
Reserve Deputy Jason Johnson received the "Meritorious Conduct Medal, Gold".
Reserve Deputy Cynthia Moyneur and Reserve Deputy Robert Sheedy, Deputies Thomas Bogdan (Aero Bureau), Scott Osborne (Aero Bureau) received the "Meritorious Conduct Medal, Silver".
Sergeants Paul Gallo and Mark Slater; Deputies Roger Burt, Frank Diana, Jeffery Martin; and Reserve Deputies Lynda Daniels and Fred Koegler, Deputies Mark Desmarteau, Darrel Airhart, Tracy River (Aero Bureau) received the "Lifesaving Medal".
Volunteer Steven Cronkhite was awarded the "Sheriff's Star Scroll".
On March 25, 2012, Mrs. Laurel (Tracy) Granger of Juniper Hills, California was driving on Angeles Forest Highway during a snow storm when she lost control of her vehicle near Mile Marker 10.47. Her vehicle slid off the roadway and down 350 feet over a snow-covered embankment. Due to the rugged area terrain and weather conditions, Mrs. Granger went unnoticed and lay critically injured at the bottom of the ravine.
The following day, a systematic search was conducted of over 100 miles of the roadway by both air and ground.
Reserve Deputy Jason Johnson spotted tire marks in the snow on the right shoulder of Angeles Forest Highway. He checked the area for any signs of the victim or her vehicle, described as a white pickup truck in the snow. He eventually spotted the pickup at the bottom of the canyon and immediately radio his discovery.
With the assistance of the others (listed above) involved in the rescue, Mrs. Granger was airlifted to a local hospital in critical condition. According to hospital personnel, Mrs. Granger "flat-lined" three times but survived due to the heroic actions of her rescuers.
We are all very proud of our deputies for these awards and the victims that survived these events.
For pictures of the event, please go to our Crescenta Sheriff's Station Facebook Page at this link: https://www.facebook.com/CrescentaValleySheriffsStation?ref=hl and click on Photos and then the 2013 Medal of Valor Awards album.
All award winners with Sheriff Baca
Sheriff's Scroll
Mrs. Granger addressing crowd with deputies on stage
Awards prior to presentation
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