Roll of Honor
William L. Rickabaugh
Incident
Police Officer Bill Rickabaugh was killed when he rode into a steel cable that had been strung across the entrance to a construction zone for the San Tomas Freeway. He had observed two boys trespassing and riding a motorcycle on what is now the San Tomas Expressway, near Monroe Street and Los Padres Boulevard. Officer Rickabaugh rode his motorcycle up a dirt ramp and collided with a metal cable that had been stretched between two posts. The cable impacted his chest. A citizen began CPR on Officer Rickabaugh, who was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Officer Rickabaugh was a U.S. Navy veteran and is buried in Golden Gate National Cemetery. He survived by his wife and two children.
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- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-418972D0- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 tribute.
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Also honored at salute.nw — U.S. Navy. One record, 2 gates. William is one person.
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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.
Police Officer Rickabaugh gave the Santa Clara Police Department 5 years.
Thank you for your service to the Santa Clara community, and 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
William L. Rickabaugh served in the U.S. Navy before joining law enforcement.
Police Officer William L. Rickabaugh is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,759 officers honored here.
In CA, 719 of 1,837 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.1% of this state's fallen. That is 39.1 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At Santa Clara Police Department, 1 of 3 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William L. Rickabaugh's cause is highlighted.
How William L. Rickabaugh Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William L. Rickabaugh is highlighted in Jan.
Incident Location
Military Service
William L. Rickabaugh served in the U.S. Navy before joining law enforcement.
Visit William L. Rickabaugh’s page on salute.nw →
His full service record — units, decorations, where he served — is kept on salute.nw.
Others Who Wore This Badge
2 officers from Santa Clara Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
