Roll of Honor
Incident
Sergeant Rutledge and Investigator William Carter were killed in an automobile crash while returning to Indio from Blythe. The patrol unit they were in veered off U.S. 10 on Chiriaco Summit and struck the back of a truck. Sergeant Rutledge was killed instantly and Investigator Carter succumbed to his injuries six days later. Sergeant Carter had been with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department for seven years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife, three children, parents, and brother.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-82FBC005- 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.
Sergeant Rutledge gave the Riverside County Sheriff's Department 7 years.
Thank you for your service to the Riverside community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Sergeant Rutledge.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Sergeant William J. Rutledge 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 Riverside County Sheriff's Department, 12 of 27 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 44.4% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. William J. Rutledge's cause is highlighted.
How William J. Rutledge Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William J. Rutledge is highlighted in May.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
26 officers from Riverside County Sheriff's Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
