DA'S OFFICE HONORS HEROES' COURAGEOUS DEEDS.Byline: Janet Gilmore Daily News Staff Writer When Eric Oliver saw a car explode in flames In Flames is a melodic death metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden founded in 1990. Along with Dark Tranquillity and At the Gates, they pioneered what is now known as melodic death metal. , there was no time to question what to do. The Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. man pulled his own car to the side of the San Diego Freeway The San Diego Freeway (Interstate 405, and the part of Interstate 5 south of the El Toro Y[1]) is one of the principal north-south highways in Southern California, and the major beltway of I-5 running through Southern California. near Los Angeles International Airport “LAX” redirects here. For other uses, see LAX (disambiguation). “KLAX” redirects here. For other uses, see KLAX (disambiguation). Los Angeles International Airport (IATA: LAX, ICAO: KLAX, FAA LID: LAX , sprinted across several lanes, hurdled the median and pulled a man to safety. ``I didn't think at all. I just did it,'' said Oliver, 27. ``I went into a mode.'' On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County District Attorney's Office recognized Oliver and seven others who got into that ``mode,'' honoring them with Courageous Citizens Awards. Prosecutors have handed out the awards for the past 10 years. This time they focused on incidents that occurred in southwest Los Angeles County. Honorees wrestled would-be robbers down to the ground, held a thief at gunpoint and chased a purse snatcher purse snatcher n (US) → persona que roba por el procedimiento del tirón purse snatcher n (US) → voleur m à l'arraché purse snatcher . The purse-snatching case occurred in October in West Hollywood West Hollywood A community of southern California northeast of Beverly Hills. It is mainly residential. Population: 36,600. . Four men jumped into action after witnessing the crime or hearing the two women victims call for help. Three of them - Marty Spiwak, 50, of Sun Valley; Paul Barry Paul Barry (born 1952) is a British-born, Australian-based journalist, who has won many awards for his investigative reporting. Early life He was born in England and graduated from Oxford University in 1973. , 30, of Anaheim; and Anthony Gates, 29, of Bellflower - followed the suspect on foot as he ran through back streets and hid in bushes. Joel Samuels, 35, of Studio City, followed the suspect by car, calling police from his car phone and alerting them to the suspect's whereabouts. Samuels said his gut instincts were pushing him to act. ``It just felt like I had to get involved,'' Samuels said. ``So many people just turn the other way and don't get involved. I really felt like I had to get involved.'' Oliver had felt the same impulse when he pulled the man from a burning car. When he saw the explosion on a morning in March 1996, Oliver, who worked as a firefighter while in the Navy, was on the San Diego Freeway en route back to Coronado Naval Base. Later, he would learn that the fire was caused by a two-car collision. After pulling out the motorist, Oliver used his jacket to smother the flames on the man, then administered first aid. It wasn't until police and paramedics arrived that it all began to sink in. ``When all the cops got there I was like `Whoa, what the hell did I do here?' '' The driver of the other car, whom Oliver also assisted at the scene, eventually pleaded guilty to felony drunk driving. As the case made its way through the court system, both the burned man and the drunk driver thanked Oliver for his help that day. Other honorees Wednesday included: Ronald Thomas, 47, of Los Angeles; Billy Jackson, 55, of Los Angeles; and Michael Stark, 31, of Santa Monica. |
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