SACRAMENTO — In a Tuesday afternoon ceremony, Upper Lake resident Timothy Mooney received a Medal of Valor from Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for rescuing a trapped victim in January.
Mooney is an equipment operator with the California Transportation Commission (Caltrans). He was one of 31 state employees nominated by his peers to receive the honor for an act of bravery.
According to a Caltrans press release, Mooney was sanding icy areas of Highway 175 between Hopland and Lakeport in the early morning Jan. 13, 2007 when he noticed a car 50 to 80 feet down a steep slope. Mooney investigated and heard noises coming from the vehicle”s trunk. He found a man inside with severe cuts on his head.
Neither the victim nor Mooney knew if the man”s alleged attacker was in the area, according to the release. In the chill of the 6:30 a.m. air, Mooney helped the victim sit up and gave him his raincoat for warmth. Mooney contacted the California Highway Patrol and stayed with the victim.
“Without thinking of his own safety, Timothy Mooney rescued the likely victim of a kidnapping and attempted murder,” according to the press release.
The Medal of Valor, started in 1959, is the highest honor the state can give its public servants. It is given to state employees who “have performed an extraordinary act of heroism above and beyond the normal call of duty, at great risk to their own personal safety or life, to save the life of another,” according to a press release from Governor Schwarzenegger”s office.
“The men and women we are honoring today are true heroes in every sense of the word,” Schwarzenegger said.
Mooney was unavailable for comment as of press time Tuesday night. According to a Caltrans spokesperson, Mooney was attending the 76th annual State Capitol Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony in Sacramento. According to the Governor”s press office release, each of the 31 state employees were honored with an ornament hung on the tree.
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com.
