13 Empleados del CDCR Reciben Estrellas de Oro y Plata por Actos Heroicos ● UPDATING

Eleven employees of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) were awarded the Gold Star, and two received the Silver Star, at the State Employee Medal of Valor ceremony on June 21, 2026. These are the highest state honors for public safety officers, recognizing extraordinary acts of heroism that included rescuing a 94-year-old woman from her burning home and shielding youth baseball players from gunfire.

Governor Gavin Newsom presented the awards, highlighting the bravery and selflessness of the recipients. Among the Gold Star honorees, Ryan Diangson, Steve Smith, and Jeremy McGhee were off-duty on December 12, 2024, when they noticed smoke coming from a neighbor's house.

Learning that the 94-year-old resident was still inside, they raced into the burning structure. Despite intense heat and thick smoke, Smith and Diangson found the frightened woman in her bedroom and guided her to safety as McGhee cleared obstacles.

They comforted her until first responders arrived.

On April 16, 2024, Johnny Huynh and Sergeant Alesandro Padilla were volunteering at a church in Elk Grove when a woman fleeing a man pleaded for help. After the man became violent and raised a chair as a weapon, Padilla tackled him to the ground, and Huynh secured his legs, de-escalating the situation.

Lieutenant Raymond Siordia, on his way to work on New Year's Day 2024, encountered a pickup truck flipped sideways in dense fog on Highway 101. The driver, a colleague, was dazed after hitting the median.

As vehicles skidded and swerved, Siordia assessed the man's condition and, unable to move the truck, pulled him to safety just as more vehicles spun out nearby.

James Jones and Sergeant Jose Navarro, driving through dense fog on December 4, 2024, came upon a head-on crash with a car on fire. They stopped and, with a local police officer, pulled several victims to safety.

Navarro stayed with a critically injured woman pinned in a vehicle, speaking calmly to her until help arrived; she later succumbed to her injuries.

On December 5, 2024, Dana Boggs witnessed a high-speed crash on Highway 50. A vehicle swerved, struck another car, and rolled multiple times, landing upside down.

Boggs activated his emergency lights, ran to the smoking wreckage, freed the driver's dog through a narrow opening, then extracted the driver and guided him away from traffic.

Correctional Officer Sandra Mendonca, on October 17, 2024, found a young woman pinned in a smoking, totaled vehicle on Interstate 80. She pried open the door, pulled the woman out, carried her across active lanes of traffic, and administered tactical first aid, stopping bleeding and stabilizing injuries until emergency responders arrived.

On April 17, 2024, Parole Agent Michael Dilger was substitute coaching a youth baseball team in Barstow when a violent brawl erupted 50 yards away. He directed children to a concrete dugout, and as gunshots rang out, he threw himself over a frozen child, shielding him with his body.

Even as stray bullets struck the concrete, Dilger positioned himself as a barrier between the children and danger.

Silver Star recipients included Correctional Officer Michael Miranda, who on December 5, 2023, helped a woman free her children from a truck that had rolled down an embankment on Highway 101. With a bystander, he broke the windshield to rescue the woman and her infant.

Lieutenant Robert Smalley, off-duty at a graduation at Sutter Union High School, saw a fight break out. He intercepted a suspect and helped a lone sheriff's deputy restrain him, ending the threat.

CDCR Secretary Jeff Macomber said, "We celebrate the brave and selfless acts of our employees. When they were needed most, they courageously risked their own safety to help others." The Gold Star is awarded for extraordinary heroism at great risk to life, while the Silver Star recognizes heroism at personal risk to save human life or state property.