Brent Charles Jameson
Agency patch
Deputy Sheriff

Brent Charles Jameson

Sonoma County Sheriff's Office — Santa Rosa, CA
Accident
End of Watch October 23, 1980
Age 30
Tour of Duty 9 yrs
The Vigil Panel 123 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Deputy Sheriff Brent Jameson and Deputy Sheriff Bliss Magly were killed when their Sheriff’s Department helicopter crashed and burned in heavy fog approximately one-half mile south of the Sonoma County Airport between River Road and Laughlin Road. Deputy Jameson and Deputy Magly were at home when they were called to help search for a shooting suspect in the area of Ludwig Avenue east of Llano Road between Sebasopol and Santa Rosa. Deputy Jameson was the pilot, and Deputy Magly was the helicopter observer, and they were returning to the airport at 8:50 p.m. Deputy Jameson had served with the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office for six years and previously served with the Novato Police Department for three years. He was survived by his wife and parents. To honor the deputies, scholarships were opened in their names at Santa Rosa Junior College to assist deserving criminal justice students. The annual Sheriff’s Department awards banquet was started as a result of this tragedy as a way to recognize the outstanding work of Sheriff’s Department employees properly. The first banquet was dedicated to Deputies Jameson and Magly, who were posthumously awarded Gold Medals of Valor. He is buried at Calvary Catholic Cemetery in Petaluma.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife and parents.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-B5738AED
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.

Are you family? This record can be claimed and maintained by those who knew Brent. Claim this record.

This page is permanent and free. No fee to view it, no advertising, no tracking, and no account required. It will not be taken down.

Tributes

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Deputy Sheriff Jameson gave the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office 9 years.
Thank you for your service to the Santa Rosa community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff Jameson.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Location Santa Rosa, CA
Platform Identity scso.sonoma.ca.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch October 23, 1980
Tour of Duty 9 yrs
Age 30
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Deputy Sheriff Brent Charles Jameson 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 Sonoma County Sheriff's Office, 3 of 7 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 42.9% of this agency's fallen.

Sonoma County Sheriff's Office
3
of 7 officers
42.9% Accident
CA — Statewide
719
of 1,837 officers
39.1% Accident
Nationwide
10,088
of 32,508 officers
31% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Brent Charles Jameson's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
17,623 (54.2%)
Accident
10,088 (31%)
Illness
2,974 (9.1%)
Cardiac
1,306 (4%)
Undetermined
260 (0.8%)
Suicide
256 (0.8%)
vehicular
1 (0%)

How Brent Charles Jameson Compares

Age at End of Watch
30
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
9
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Brent Charles Jameson is highlighted in Oct.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
707
May
847
Jun
795
Jul
897
Aug
937
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location