San Bernardino Officer Recognized for Valor

San Bernardino City police officer Marcus Pesquera will receive a medal of valor from Gov. Jerry Brown in a ceremony this month, recognizing the bravery shown by Pesquera in a shoot out last August. Pesquera will receive the Governor's Public Safety Officer's Medal of Valor Award on Sept. 14 at the capitol building in downtown Sacramento. It is the highest state award for valor presented to a public safety officer. Pesquera is the first officer in the San Bernardino City police department to receive this award. On Aug. 22, 2014 just after 2 a.m., Gabriel Garcia, a field training officer with the San Bernardino City police department was on patrol with his trainee, Pesquera, in the 1900 block of North Garner Avenue in San Bernardino. At the time, Garcia was a six-year veteran of the department, and Pesquera was a recent academy graduate and had been in training for approximately 45 days. As the two officers drove northbound into what was a poorly lit dead-end street, they observed a vehicle illegally parked along the west side of the street. There was a group of subjects standing around the vehicle, which had the hood up and the doors open. Because of recent issues related to stolen vehicles and other crimes in the area, the officers decided to contact the subjects and investigate, according to local police. Both officers exited their vehicle and approached the subjects on foot. Due to the separation of the subjects, the officers moved away from each other by several feet. Pesquera reported hearing Garcia say something similar to, “Come over here” and “Let me see your hands,” then immediately heard a gunshot. Unbeknownst to Pesquera, Garcia had been shot in the head and lay gravely wounded on the ground. Pesquera immediately engaged the suspect in a close quarters gun battle as he backed towards his vehicle for cover. Police reported the suspect, who was initially armed with a revolver, moved to another position and armed himself with an assault weapon that was fitted with a laser sighting device. At one point during the exchange of gunfire Pesquera saw the laser visible requiring him to tactically maneuver to a different firing position. During the continuing gun battle, Pesquera was required to maneuver to several different locations for cover, and at one point was able to see that Garcia lay wounded on the ground. Despite his inexperience, Pesquera utilized his training to remain calm, engage the suspect, as well as communicate to the dispatch center, via radio that his partner was down, and he was in a gunfight. He conducted several reloads of his firearm and continued to engage the suspect until he neutralized the threat to both himself and his downed partner. Due to Pesquera’s courage, he was able to return fire and end the engagement as quickly as possible while simultaneously radioing the situation to the communications center, allowing officers to arrive quickly and render assistance. Garcia was quickly transported to a local hospital for emergency treatment. Owing to the extreme nature of Garcia’s wound it was crucial for him to receive emergency treatment as quickly as possible as every second was crucial towards determining whether or not he would survive. In the face of incredible odds against him, Garcia is on the road to recovery after a lengthy battle to save his life after this incident over one year ago. Pesquera has also recently been named the recipient of a Black Rose award for his courage, which will also be presented to him next month by the San Bernardino Black Culture Foundation.