Officer Kevin Kole and Sgt. Richard Escalante, both officers at Centinela State Prison, received the Medal of Valor Award at this year’s ceremony held during the Corrections USA conference Feb. 6 in Las Vegas.
The annual conference honors the courageous men and women who, as professional, public correctional officers, go above and beyond the call of duty to protect the safety of the public.
The two officers were off duty and visiting Laughlin, Nev., on July 28 when they responded to a water recreation accident.
A father and son were on a jet ski, lost control and were thrown into the water where the current pulled them toward a parked taxi boat, ultimately pulling the pair under the boat.
The off-duty officers, ignoring the undertow warning signs, jumped in the water from a nearby dock and rescued the father and son.
Medal of Valor Award winners are nominated by their peers, supervisors, community members or government leaders.
This year, in addition to the nomination of the Centinela officers, there are 14 other recipients, including some who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their service, their lives.
There were six correctional officer deaths throughout the nation in 2012.
Corrections USA is a nonprofit corporation formed by professional, public correctional officers in 1998 to provide national recognition for correctional officers employed by federal, state and local governments.
The corporation works daily to enhance the image of correctional officers across the nation.
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