Roll of Honor
Incident
Deputy Sheriff Charles Ley was killed in an automobile crash while on patrol on May 24th, 1972, at 2 am. When he and his partner were stopped at an intersection, they observed a car run a red light and pursued the car on Valley Boulevard. As they were entering the 605 Freeway southbound, they lost control of their patrol car on the curve. The vehicle went off the road, rolled over twice, and landed upside down against a fence. Deputy Ley was pronounced dead at the scene. His partner survived with minor injuries. Both deputies had been wearing their seatbelts and helmets. Deputy Ley had served with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department for four years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, two sons, and two daughters.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-3D956351- 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 Sheriff Ley gave the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department 4 years.
Thank you for your service to the Los Angeles community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff Ley.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Deputy Sheriff Charles O. Ley 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 CA, 719 of 1,837 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.1% of this state's fallen. That is 8.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Los Angeles County Sheriff's Dept., 50 of 120 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 41.7% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Charles O. Ley's cause is highlighted.
How Charles O. Ley Compares
Offender Outcome
Not available
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Charles O. Ley is highlighted in May.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
119 officers from Los Angeles County Sheriff's Dept. are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
