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HPD award honors lifesaver Yamamoto


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POSTED: Monday, December 08, 2008

A police sergeant who caught a woman by her shirt after she jumped off a Waikiki parking structure won one of four medals and several certificates awarded by the Honolulu Police Department.

Honolulu Police Chief Boisse Correa handed out the awards at the department's third-quarter awards ceremony Wednesday, a police news release said.

Waikiki Sgt. David Yamamoto won the Bronze Medal of Honor, the department's third-highest award, for saving the woman who jumped off the fourth floor of a Tusitala Street structure. After grabbing the woman's shirt, he swung her safely onto the third floor.

After the woman tried to jump again, Yamamoto swung himself to the third floor and forced the woman into a safe area.

Chinatown Officer Chris Kim won the Bronze Medal of Merit for pulling a woman attempting suicide out of the waves and boulders at Point Panic at Kakaako.

Civilians Hermon Henry and Ilanlan Asher received the Civilian Medal of Valor for helping catch a Makiki assailant. After witnessing a stabbing, the men grabbed the attacker and took his knife and keys away. Asher attended to the victim's wounds, and Henry followed the attacker until police arrived.

East Honolulu Officer Eligio Reyes was chosen HPD employee of the quarter for his outstanding work, dedication to service and enthusiasm for the job. The HPD Career Center, which cut the processing time for police recruits in half, to 18 weeks from 38, was named the unit of the quarter.

Police also awarded five Certificates of Merit to a police officer and four civilians for actions such as subduing an armed man, chasing down an attacker and leading police to a shoplifter.