Sheriff’s Office Honors its Heroes at Merit Awards Ceremony
The awards come in five categories: Outstanding Community Service, Certificate of Commendation, the Lifesaving Award, the Medal of Valor, and the Medal of Honor

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. – The County of Santa Clara Sheriff’s Office honored more than five dozen of its top-notch employees for exemplary work done in the realm of public safety at its annual Merit Awards Ceremony.
These hard-earned and coveted awards cover outstanding acts of volunteerism, bravery, heroism, sacrifice and courage, said Sheriff Bob Jonsen.
“The Sheriff’s Office has some of the finest men and women in law enforcement,” said Sheriff Jonsen. “Their commitment to excellence and public service is impressive, and I couldn’t be prouder to be part of this team.”
The awards come in five categories: Outstanding Community Service, Certificate of Commendation, the Lifesaving Award, the Medal of Valor, and the Medal of Honor.
The various categories can highlight compassionate acts of service within the community. One deputy helped to arrange birthday gifts for a young boy whose father was arrested on domestic violence charges a year after a similar incident meant the boy’s birthday went without a celebration. Not this year – the deputy and his team pitched in for a PlayStation and surprised the boy on his birthday weekend.
Other awardees are lifesavers. Such as the deputy who talked a young, suicidal survivor of sexual assault off a bridge overpass. He gently and quickly developed a rapport with the teen, chatting about life, music, school, friends and family. The teen intended to jump off the bridge that day, but the deputy convinced the youth to change course and seek help instead.
Another deputy was off-duty and on a trip to the Children’s Discovery Museum with his wife and infant child when a toddler took a tumble and was knocked out. He was fast to act, performing CPR for two minutes on the unconscious, unbreathing child before signs of life returned and paramedics took over.
The Medal of Valor and Medal of Honor are given to those who rise to great levels, often in a harrowing situation with their own safety at risk.
That includes a pair of deputies who were first to arrive at a burning Cupertino home, where they learned a 60-year-old man with mobility issues was trapped inside. They immediately rushed through smoke and flames to locate and rescue him, while making sure nobody else was inside.
There was also a sergeant and 14 deputies who were in an intense face off with a gunman who was sniping at them from a burning building. One deputy’s body armor caught a ricocheted bullet, while others were struck by shrapnel. Ultimately, they used the department’s armored vehicle to close in and subdue the attacker.
One of the deputies involved in that standoff won another award – the Medal of Honor – for disarming a man who drew a pistol with intent to shoot and then tried to run the officer down with his vehicle.
The other Medal of Honor recipients were a pair of deputies at the main jail who subdued an inmate armed with an improvised knife, successfully taking him down even though one of the deputies had been stabbed in the back and severely cut on his arms in the ambush attack.
“I am beyond grateful for the dedication and commitment of those being honored,” said Sheriff Jonsen. “Their devotion and commitment to the County, this office and especially to the community they serve are extraordinary.”
AWARDEES:
Outstanding Community Service:
Christopher Masten
Dr. Aurora Bibb
Adeline Espinoza
Richard Buseman
Sgt. Fabian DeSantiago
Cheryl Walsh
Rolando Wehbe
Certificate of Commendation
Sgt. Christopher Tolbertson
Deputy Conor Emery
Alberto Martinez Jr.
Dr. Patrick Marshall
Lt. Gurpreet Gill
Lt. Aaron Simonson
Sgt. Andrew Galaviz
Sgt. Colin Haselbach
Deputy Cary Colla
Deputy Peter Nguyen
Deputy Robert Paul
Deputy Matthew Robinson
Deputy Christopher Hilt
Deputy Alejandro Gomez
Lifesaving Award
Deputy Jesse Sanders
Deputy Kevin Chai
Deputy Cody Levene
Deputy Christopher Szemanski
Reserve Capt. Warren Eide
Reserve Sgt. Greg Sandoval
Deputy Lucas Crawford
Deputy Sebastian Ramirez
Deputy Jason Satariano
Deputy Charles Webb
Deputy Ramon Gonzales Jr.
Deputy Eric Barton
Deputy Michael Tapia
Deputy Christopher Hilt
Deputy Ryan Griep
Deputy Edgar Hernandez
Deputy Marissa Navarro
Deputy Jeff Jordahl
Deputy Rickey Hanson
Deputy Mario Lewis-Soper
Deputy Donald Staden
Deputy Jose Melesio-Trejo
Deputy Tuan Le
Medal of Valor
Deputy Jesus Plancarte
Deputy Miguel Ruiz
Sgt. Marcus Barbour
Deputy Eric Barton
Deputy Ryan Griep
Deputy Edgar Hernandez
Deputy Christopher Hilt
Deputy Darren Lee
Deputy Rahim Mohamed
Deputy Steven Parodi
Deputy Timur Ruban
Deputy Jose Rios
Deputy Damario Dimms
Deputy Jeffrey Stanford
Deputy William Boring
Deputy Ryan Vesey
Deputy Tyler Stevenson
Medal of Honor
Deputy Jose Rios
Deputy Austin Dongon
Deputy Vicente Gonzalez Jr.