Deputy Sheriff Bliss Steven Magly

Bliss Steven Magly

Deputy Sheriff Bliss Magly and Deputy Sheriff Brent Jameson 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 Magly and Deputy Jameson 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 Magly had served with the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office 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 Santa Rosa Memorial Park.