SAN FERNANDO : Police Officer Will Receive Medal of Valor

The gun could not have misfired at a worse time for police officer Chris Draper. A machete-wielding man had terrorized a San Fernando hardware store and was now running straight at him, screaming, “I kill you!”

Temporarily defenseless, Draper had to think of a way to survive. The last thing on his mind was getting a medal. Yet, it is a medal that he will receive for his dramatic confrontation--the first medal of valor presented by the San Fernando Police Department in 20 years. The award will be presented Wednesday.

“I wasn’t thinking about anything heroic,” said Draper, 32, an eight-year veteran of the force. “An urge to survive came over me.”

While other officers in the small department have had to stare death in the face since the last medal of valor was awarded 20 years ago, it was Draper’s respect for human life--as well as his bravery--that made him a recipient.

“The reason an officer joins the force is to help people and help the community,” said San Fernando Police Chief Dominick Rivetti. “Fortunately, having to use deadly force doesn’t happen very often in our community. It’s a very serious and difficult decision.

“But to have a gun misfire on you when you make that decision, that’s the nightmare of all nightmares for a police officer. And he didn’t panic. It was remarkable.”

The incident began at about 7 p.m. last Dec. 14 when Draper received a radio call describing a man threatening people with a machete at the Home Depot on Foothill Boulevard.

The suspect, later identified as Loc Quand Ly, a 24-year-old man from Vietnam, had picked out a machete from the store and was waving it around, sending frightened customers running. Then, Ly followed the crowd out to the parking lot, where he smashed the car windshield of a security guard who tried to stop him.

Arriving alone moments later without backup, Draper encountered an agitated Ly in the west end of the parking lot. He ordered Ly to drop the weapon, and Ly charged. Draper fired his .45 caliber semiautomatic--and nothing happened.

“When the gun misfired, he was about two feet away from me and starting a swing,” Draper recalled. “I didn’t have time to clear the gun before he had a chance to hit my head with the machete, so I had to turn my back to protect myself.”

Two blows with the machete raked the young officer’s back--blows that could have been fatal had he not been wearing his bulletproof vest.

“I felt both impacts. I thought that was it. I thought I was going to die right here in the parking lot,” Draper said. “I decided I’m not going to die in the parking lot. That wasn’t going to happen to me.”

Draper bolted as fast as he could to escape the flashing blade. Ly pursued him around the parking lot. The next 60 seconds were the longest of Draper’s life.

“It felt like he was a step behind me,” Draper said. “I had gotten my gun working, but I couldn’t stop and fire because he was so close. It took about a minute to put some distance between us.”

Draper spun around and emptied his gun at his attacker. Ly did not stop. Thinking he had missed, Draper reloaded his weapon. When he looked up, Ly was on the ground, dead.

Ever since that day, Draper has struggled to cope with taking a man’s life. It is not something he feels proud of, much less something he believes should earn him a medal.

“I get the impression that some people think that maybe police enjoy shooting people,” said Draper. “That’s not the case. I don’t know of a single officer who wants to hurt somebody. But the thing that makes it easier is that if I didn’t (shoot), it would have been me or somebody else who lost (their life).”