An Uncommon Courage

Certain things we expect from our cops: that they will be there to protect us, fearless in the face of danger. Rarely do we expect those virtues from our fellow citizens--particularly here in a metropolis that often seems too busy to care. But four men honored earlier this month for bravery in the North Hollywood bank shootout give hope that courage and selflessness may be more common than they seem.

That terrible Friday in February tested the spirits and the wills of even the most veteran cops. But the men honored by the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office were just ordinary guys who found themselves in an instant in an extraordinary situation--no different from what any of us could stumble into on any given day.

North Hollywood dentist Jorge Montes--whose office sits across from the Bank of America branch on Laurel Canyon Boulevard where two robbers held throngs of police at bay with automatic weapons fire--grabbed medical supplies from his office and used them to treat wounded officers.

Even as bullets shredded his locksmith hut, Jose Haro of North Hollywood ran to nearby shops and pulled bystanders out of the line of fire.

Hector Quevedo of Van Nuys and David Campbell were driving their armored car when the shootout began. Police asked to use it as cover. Rather than simply surrendering the vehicle, the two men navigated it right into the middle of the fight, providing officers a potentially life-saving shield. Then Campbell helped a wounded bystander by removing his shirt so it could be used as a tourniquet.

Crisis exposes the true mettle of a person. Montes, Haro, Quevedo and Campbell demonstrated theirs.