The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office presented awards on Nov. 4 to four Los Angeles residents who performed heroic deeds.

The District Attorney’s Office’s Courageous Citizen Awards were presented to Mitchell Cohen, Adriana Martinez, Osmar Gonzalez and Aaron Rivas. The awards honor individuals who have acted at considerable personal risk to help a victim or help capture a suspect, and to people who have testified in court, knowing that it could put them in peril.

In October 2005, Cohen helped save the life of a person injured in a violent traffic collision caused by a driver who ran a red light at 60 miles per hour.  Immediately following the crash, the assailant jumped out of his wrecked vehicle, carjacked another vehicle and fled the scene. Cohen, who witnessed the collision and carjacking as he stood waiting for his child’s school bus, aided the injured driver and called 911.  The victim, who sustained a punctured aorta and required the removal of his spleen, credits Cohen with saving his life. Cohen went on to identify the carjacker and testify at trial.

Martinez, a Los Angeles resident was driving through Skid Row in February 2008 when she saw a man attack a male victim with a knife.  Martinez tried to call 911, but her phone did not work. She asked bystanders to help, but they did nothing. Martinez tried honking her horn to scare the attacker to no avail.  Ultimately, Martinez drove away and found other bystanders who called for help. The victim survived, and the suspect was later arrested, convicted of assault with a deadly weapon causing great bodily injury.

In January, Gonzalez and Rivas, 20, both of Los Angeles, captured a purse snatcher who used a taser to immobilize his victim. Gonzalez and Rivas pursued the assailant for roughly a half-mile. The suspect fought with Rivas until Gonzalez tackled and restrained him.