Roll of Honor
Incident
Their helicopter experienced mechanical problems and crashed while returning to Milwaukee County. The deputies performed an instrumental role in apprehending the suspect, who was wanted for murdering an off-duty police officer. The helicopter was a 20-year-old military surplus aircraft.
Deputy Zylka, the flight observer, had served with the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Department for 24 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and two children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-WI-2E5177C5- 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
24 years. You could have gone home.
Deputy Sheriff I Zylka gave the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office 24 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Milwaukee community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff I Zylka.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Deputy Sheriff I Ralph Edward Zylka 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 WI, 124 of 317 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 Milwaukee County Sheriff's Dept., 10 of 13 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 76.9% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Ralph Edward Zylka's cause is highlighted.
How Ralph Edward Zylka Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Ralph Edward Zylka is highlighted in Aug.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
12 officers from Milwaukee County Sheriff's Dept. are honored on badge.nw.
