Roll of Honor
Incident
Sergeant Ben Mendis suffered a fatal heart attack while working a difficult case.
He was found collapsed at his desk at 1541 Civic Center Drive.
Sergeant Mendis had served with the Santa Clara Police Department for 15 years and was assigned to the Detective Bureau. He was a U.S. Army veteran.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-1CA3077F- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Sergeant Mendis gave the Santa Clara Police Department 15 years.
Thank you for your service to the Santa Clara community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
Ben L. Mendis, Jr. served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Sergeant Ben L. Mendis, Jr. is one of 1,306 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 4% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In CA, 52 of 1,837 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 2.8% of this state's fallen. That is 1.2 percentage points below the national rate of 4%.
At Santa Clara Police Department, 1 of 3 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 33.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Cardiac compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Ben L. Mendis, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.
How Ben L. Mendis, Jr. Compares
When Cardiac Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Cardiac deaths across the full memorial record. Ben L. Mendis, Jr. is highlighted in Oct.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
2 officers from Santa Clara Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
