Family members and friends gathered Thursday on the Capitol grounds in Salt Lake City to remember Utah’s fallen officers during the annual Utah Law Enforcement Memorial Service.
Since 1853, 147 police officers have been killed while serving the citizens of Utah. The most recent was Ogden officer Nathan J. Lyday who was shot and killed while responding to a domestic violence call on May 28, 2020.
No officers were lost during 2021.
According to utahsfallen.org, Utah Peace Officers Standards and Training Director Rich Townsend initiated the first state police memorial in 1988, which was located in the Capitol rotunda.
In 2004, construction on the Capitol necessitated the removal of the memorial from the rotunda and it was determined that no memorials would be allowed there.
The Capitol Preservation Board allocated a prominent location just outside the west doors of the Capitol as the location of the new memorial, which was dedicated on Sept. 6, 2008.
