Santa Clara Police Department, California
End of Watch: Tuesday, January 11, 1966
Age: 28
Tour of Duty: 5 years
Badge Number: 39
Cause of Death: Motorcycle crash
Date of Incident: January 11, 1966
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Police Officer Bill Rickabaugh was killed when he rode into a steel cable that had been strung across the entrance to a construction zone for the San Tomas Freeway.
He had observed two boys trespassing and riding a motorcycle on what is now the San Tomas Expressway, near Monroe Street and Los Padres Boulevard. Officer Rickabaugh rode his motorcycle up a dirt ramp and collided with a metal cable that had been stretched between two posts. The cable impacted his chest.
A citizen began CPR on Officer Rickabaugh, who was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Officer Rickabaugh was a U.S. Navy veteran and is buried in Golden Gate National Cemetery. He survived by his wife and two children.