Senate Concurrent ResolutionNo. 38


Introduced by Senator Roth

(Coauthor: Assembly Member Medina)

April 9, 2015


Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 38—Relative to memorial highways.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SCR 38, as introduced, Roth. Memorial highways.

This measure would designate a specified portion of State Highway Route 91 in the County of Riverside as the Staff Sergeant Salvador J. Lara, Staff Sergeant Ysmael R. Villegas, and Sergeant Jesus S. Duran Memorial Highway. The measure would request the Department of Transportation to determine the cost of appropriate signs showing this special designation and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering that cost, to erect those signs.

Fiscal committee: yes.

P1    1WHEREAS, Staff Sergeant Salvador J. Lara was born in
2Riverside, California, in 1920 and is survived by his niece Vivian
3Hernandez and his brother Alfonzo. Alfonzo accepted the Medal
4of Honor on behalf of his late brother from President Barack
5Obama during a White House ceremony held on March 18, 2014.
6Staff Sergeant Lara died on September 1, 1945, and is buried at
7the Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial in Saint-Avold,
8Moselle, France; and

9WHEREAS, Staff Sergeant Lara was one of 24 veterans awarded
10the Medal of Honor through the National Defense Authorization
11Act for Fiscal Year 2002 (Public Law 107-107) which called for
12a review of Jewish American and Hispanic American veterans
P2    1from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War to
2ensure that Jewish American and Hispanic American veterans
3deserving the Medal of Honor were not subject to prejudice; and

4WHEREAS, Then-Private First Class Salvador J. Lara
5distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity for his
6valorous actions in Aprilia, Italy, May 27-28, 1944. During the
7fight on May 27, he aggressively led his rifle squad in neutralizing
8multiple enemy strong points and inflicting large numbers of
9casualties on the enemy. The next morning, as his company
10resumed the attack, Private First Class Lara sustained a severe leg
11wound, but did not stop to receive first aid. Private First Class Lara
12continued his exemplary performance until he captured his
13objective; and

14WHEREAS, Private First Class Lara’s extraordinary heroism
15and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty were in keeping
16with the highest traditions of the United States Army and
17demonstrated his ability and leadership as the squad leader of a
18rifle squad with the 2nd Platoon, Company L, 180th Infantry, 45th
19Infantry Division during combat operations against a determined
20enemy; and

21WHEREAS, Private First Class Lara achieved the rank of Staff
22Sergeant and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
23(upgraded to the Medal of Honor on March 18, 2014), the Bronze
24Star, the Purple Heart, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the
25European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with two
26Bronze Service Stars, the World War II Victory Medal, the
27Presidential Unit Citation, the Combat Infantryman Badge, and
28the Honorable Service Lapel Button-World War II; and

29WHEREAS, Staff Sergeant Ysmael “Smiley” R. Villegas was
30a Mexican American who was born on March 21, 1924, and raised
31in the Casa Blanca neighborhood in the City of Riverside,
32California. On October 19, 1945, President Harry S. Truman
33posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor to Staff Sergeant
34Villegas, presenting the medal to his surviving family. Staff
35Sergeant Villegas was the first Riverside County resident to ever
36receive the Medal of Honor and the first veteran to be buried at
37the Riverside National Cemetery when the cemetery opened in
381978; and

39WHEREAS, On March 1, 1945, Staff Sergeant Villegas’
40company found itself engaged in combat against Japanese forces
P3    1at the Villa Verde Trail on the island of Luzon in the Philippines,
2in what is known today as the Battle of Luzon. His squad was
3attacked by an enemy machinegun nest. Staff Sergeant Villegas
4took it upon himself to save his squad by destroying the nest and
5its occupants. For these actions, Villegas was awarded the Silver
6Star; and

7WHEREAS, On March 20, 1945, Staff Sergeant Villegas was
8leading his squad at Villa Verde Trail in Luzon in the Philippines,
9his unit advancing in a forward position, when they suddenly
10clashed with a strongly entrenched group of Japanese soldiers who
11commanded the surrounding area and were hiding in caves and
12foxholes. Staff Sergeant Villegas moved boldly from man to man,
13in the face of bursting grenades and demolition charges, through
14heavy machinegun and rifle fire, to bolster the spirit of his
15comrades. Inspired by his gallantry, his men pressed forward to
16the crest of the hill. Numerous enemy riflemen, refusing to flee,
17continued firing from their foxholes; and

18WHEREAS, Staff Sergeant Villegas upon his own initiative
19attacked five enemy foxholes, killing all of the occupants, and was
20mortally wounded when he attacked the sixth foxhole. Through
21his heroism and indomitable fighting spirit, Staff Sergeant Villegas
22inspired his men to a determined attack that swept the enemy from
23the field; and

24WHEREAS, The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) named Post
25184 in Riverside, California, the “Ysmael R. Villegas Memorial
26Casa Blanca Post” in his honor. A statue by sculptor Gary Courter,
27called Villegas Memorial, was dedicated on May 27, 1995, and is
28located on Main Street Civic Center Courtyard in the City of
29Riverside. The Ysmael R. Villegas Middle School in the City of
30Riverside is named in his honor; and

31WHEREAS, Staff Sergeant Villegas was survived by his mother
32and father, and by five brothers and six sisters. In 2014, at a
33memorial service to commemorate the Mexican American veterans
34from the historic Casa Blanca community in the City of Riverside,
35five of Villegas’ sisters and one brother were in attendance:
36Rafaela, Lottie, Helen, Martha, Pat, and Art; and

37WHEREAS, Staff Sergeant Villegas was also awarded the Silver
38Star, the Purple Heart, the American Campaign Medal, the
39Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal,
40and the Philippine Liberation Medal; and

P4    1WHEREAS, Sergeant Jesus S. Duran was born on July 26, 1948,
2in Juarez, Mexico, and was the sixth of 12 siblings. He passed
3away on February 17, 1977, and is survived by his daughter Tina
4Duran-Ruvalcaba, who accepted the Medal of Honor on his behalf
5from President Barack Obama on March 18, 2014, in a ceremony
6at the White House. The following day, she received the Medal of
7Honor flag from Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel in a ceremony
8where Sergeant Duran was inducted into the Pentagon Hall of
9Heroes; and

10WHEREAS, Sergeant Duran, like Staff Sergeant Lara, was one
11of 24 veterans awarded the Medal of Honor through the National
12Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2002; and

13WHEREAS, Sergeant Duran joined the United States Army on
14May 13, 1968, and was assigned to Company E, 2nd Battalion,
155th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) to support Search
16and Destroy missions. During his service in the Vietnam War,
17Sergeant Duran distinguished himself during combat operations
18against an armed enemy in the Republic of Vietnam on April 10,
191969; and

20WHEREAS, On that afternoon, upon learning that two seriously
21wounded troopers lay helplessly pinned down under harassing fire,
22then-Specialist Four Jesus S. Duran assaulted the suppressive
23enemy positions, firing deadly bursts on the run. Mounting his
24weapon on a log, he fired directly into the enemy’s foxholes,
25eliminating four and cutting down several others as they fled; and

26WHEREAS, Specialist Four Duran then continued to pour
27effective fire on the disorganized and fleeing enemy. His
28extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call
29of duty, as well as his acts of gallantry and intrepidity, were in
30keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect
31great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army;
32and

33WHEREAS, Jesus S. Duran achieved the rank of Sergeant and,
34upon leaving the military, pursued a career as a corrections officer
35at a juvenile detention center in the City of San Bernardino,
36California. While working there, he dedicated numerous hours of
37personal time to mentor youth and lead them on educational trips.
38Sergeant Duran married twice and had two children. He loved
39spending time with all of his family; and

P5    1WHEREAS, Sergeant Duran also received the Bronze Star
2Medal, the Air Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the
3National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal with
4four Bronze Service Stars, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the
5Sharpshooter Marksmanship Badge with Auto Rifle and the
6Browning Automatic Rifle “BAR” Machine Gun, the Marksman
7Marksmanship Badge with Rifle Bar, the Vietnam Campaign
8Medal with 1960 Device, and the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry
9Cross Unit Citations with Palm Device; now, therefore, be it

10Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
11thereof concurring,
That the Legislature hereby designates that
12portion of State Highway Route 91 from Madison Street to the
13State Highway Route 60, Interstate 215 interchange in the County
14of Riverside as the Staff Sergeant Salvador J. Lara, Staff Sergeant
15Ysmael R. Villegas, and Sergeant Jesus S. Duran Memorial
16Highway; and be it further

17Resolved, That the Department of Transportation is requested
18to determine the cost of appropriate signs consistent with the
19signing requirements for the state highway system showing this
20special designation and, upon receiving donations from nonstate
21sources sufficient to cover the cost, to erect those signs; and be it
22further

23Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
24this resolution to the Director of Transportation and to the author
25for appropriate distribution.



O

    99