COUNTY HONORS NINE LOCAL HEROES FOR FIGHTING CRIME.

Byline: Karen Maeshiro Daily News Staff Writer

Their acts of bravery included tackling a suspected armed carjacker, chasing two fleeing suspects until their drive shaft fell out of their car, and turning in a suspected drug dealer.

Nine people from the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys - who were described by Los Angeles County District Attorney Gil Garcetti as having ``nothing to gain and everything to lose'' by their actions - were honored Monday for their courage.

``They knew the right thing,'' Garcetti said after the awards luncheon. ``It got to their gut, to the very core of what's right and wrong, and they responded to help someone.''

Six of the nine people nominated by local prosecutors were present to receive their Courageous Citizen Awards from Garcetti during a luncheon of the Lancaster-West Rotary.

The awards recognize acts of heroism by citizens who have displayed courage in either aiding victims of crime, assisting in the apprehension of suspects, or coming forward as witnesses.

One of the recipients was 33-year-old Tom Cowan of Palmdale who was on his way home from work on April 16 when he stopped at the Antelope Valley Mall to buy a cable for his computer.

As the hospital engineer was leaving the mall, he noticed a battered station wagon being pursued by a mall security truck, which could not keep up. At that point, Cowan took up the chase.

The station wagon swerved erratically, went up a center divider and around other cars, and then went over a dip in the road and lost its drive shaft near 30th Street West and Avenue N-8.

Cowan parked and got out and was approached by the driver, a large man with arms ``like tree trunks,'' while a female passenger jumped out of the suspects' car, her arms full of packages, and she tried to hide the packages in the bushes nearby.

Cowan stood his ground with a Maglite flashlight and told the man to return to his car and keep his hands where Cowan could see them. He then called sheriff's deputies from his celluar telephone.

``I have zero tolerance for people who blatantly abuse the law, thieving and driving like idiots. I wanted to prevent them from getting away,'' Cowan said.

Fourteen-year-olds Brian Froeming and John Burke, both of Canyon Country, helped authorities nab a suspected drug dealer. While on their way home from junior high on March 25, the boys were approached by a man driving a BMW.

The man offered to sell them drugs, but the boys refused. A couple of days later, the two boys saw the man again outside their school and appeared to be making a sale to a teen-ager. The boys went across the street and called deputies. Burke was not able to make the ceremony.

``When a 14-year-old gets involved, it is something we're all proud of,'' Garcetti told Froeming. ``You're the type of person that I want as my neighbor.''

Harold Lewis, 61, of Lancaster, a Caltrans equipment operator who supervises community service work crews, was having lunch with crew members on May 5 when they heard a car crash near the Santiago Canyon exit off the Antelope Valley Freeway.

Running to the location to see if he could offer help, Lewis was startled to see sheriff's squad cars blocking off the street. A woman ran out of one car and was arrested by deputies, but the male driver fled with his hand under his jacket as though he had a weapon.

The man ran past Lewis, who tackled him. The suspect threatened to stab Lewis, but the knife the man was reaching for went flying when Lewis tackled him and lay on the ground 10 feet away.

The suspect was wanted for two carjackings that had taken place a short time earlier in which a pellet gun resembling a 9mm handgun was used. The suspect had led deputies on a 90 mph chase before colliding with a truck.

``I see injustice every day with people throwing trash onto the freeway,'' Lewis said. ``I figured I had to do something. I didn't think about it. Someone said, `Get him,' and I did.''

Dale Punter, 35, and Rick Wingate, 43, both of Lancaster, helped capture suspects in the armed robberies of a Palmdale credit union office and a Lancaster gas station on the same day last Nov. 15.

On their way to lunch, they heard a broadcast of the suspects' getaway van on Punter's police scanner. Before the broadcast had ended, the two men spotted the vehicle and followed it to a Lancaster apartment complex and then called deputies from a pay phone across the street.

``We heard it go down,'' said Wingate, a warehouseman at Edwards Air Force Base. ``We thought they might need help, and we helped them.''

Punter, who works in sales at Costco, said he is a big supporter of law enforcement. ``I feel it's important that people do the right thing,'' Punter said.

On March 8, Victor Neria, 21, of Santa Clarita, was visiting his sister and a friend who were working at the American Savings Bank in Valencia. He noticed a man who was wearing sunglasses and a hooded sweatshirt enter.

Neria thought it was too warm outside for someone to be so attired. The man was carrying a large manila envelope and let other people in ahead of him in line.

After the man got to a teller window and handed the teller a note, the teller put money in the envelope, and the man left the bank. Neria followed him but lost him. He was later able to identify the suspect from a photograph line-up.

``I did it because my sister and close friend work at the bank,'' said Neria, who installs tires at a Costco store and wants to pursue a career in law enforcement. ``I personally don't think it was a big deal. I didn't try to tackle him. I tried to follow him.''

Joseph Adair Garcia, 18, of Castaic, and Simona Madrigal, 18, of Saugus, also were given awards but were not present at the ceremony. On March 9, the pair helped in the arrest of a suspected drunk driver who was driving erratically.

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Photo: (color in AV edition only) Courageous Citizen Awardwinner from left, Tom Cowan, Dale Punter, Victor Neria and Harold Lewis display the plaques they received form Los Angeles County District Attorney Gil Garcetti during a Lancaster-West Rotary luncheon.