Roll of Honor
Incident
Deputy Ralph Butler was killed when his patrol car was struck by a tractor-trailer on U.S. 60 about 12 miles west of Wickenburg. Deputy Butler received a radio call for assistance at the scene of a fatal crash. After turning his car around off the pavement, he pulled back on the road directly in the path of a large tractor-trailer. The impact caused him to become pinned in the wreckage. It took more than 1-1/2 hours for an ambulance to respond from Phoenix because the local emergency vehicles were at the scene of the original crash 25 miles away. Deputy Butler was transported to a hospital in Wickenburg before being flown to Phoenix for surgery. He succumbed to his injuries the following evening. Deputy Butler had served with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office for six years. He was survived by his wife and two children. His father served as a police officer for the Wickenburg Police Department.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and two children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-AZ-D805C9B7- 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 never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Deputy Butler gave the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office 6 years.
Thank you for your service to the Phoenix community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Butler.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Deputy Ralph K. Butler is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In AZ, 95 of 330 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 28.8% of this state's fallen. That is 2.2 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, 10 of 28 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 35.7% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Ralph K. Butler's cause is highlighted.
How Ralph K. Butler Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Ralph K. Butler is highlighted in Jun.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
27 officers from Maricopa County Sheriff's Office are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
