San Diego officials took time Thursday to honor honest-to-god heroes who at their own peril saved strangers or neighbors.
Isaac Mendez said his girlfriend heard screams at 3:20 a.m on Dec. 3, 2007. It turns out that a neighbor in their Pacific Beach neighborhood was being sexually assaulted. At great personal risk, Mendez took action when no one else would. He suffered a serious head wound that required seven stitches, but in the end, he was able to rescue the woman being attacked.
For that act of bravery, Mendez was recognized during the 2008 Salute to Local Heroes. He was one of six local heroes honored for their acts of bravery and courage. The event was sponsored by the Rotary Club of San Diego and is in its 18th year.
Also being honored are Charlton and Alexandra Lee of San Marcos. They assisted a domestic-violence victim who was being stabbed. It turned out to be a high-profile case because the suspect in the case is actor Shelley Malil, who appeared in the movie "40-Year-Old Virgin."
Other heroes recognized are Dylan Dearborn of Santee, who chased a drunk driver who had fled the scene of a hit-and-run that killed a pedestrian; and two sailors stationed on board USS Ronald Reagan, Deon Millan and DeJion Rivers, who stopped a hatchet-wielding man who was attacking his girlfriend and her family during a domestic-violence assault.
