March 19, 1943 – November 28, 2020

Paul Mangelson served the Utah Highway Patrol for forty years, beginning in 1967.  He retired to his home in Levan in 2007, where he resided until his passing on November 28, 2020.

During his UHP service, he worked diligently and studied narcotics interdiction methods and techniques, which he perfected to a science.  He has the distinction of removing more controlled substances from criminal circulation in Utah than any other single officer in state history.  In addition to the hundreds and hundreds of successful interdiction arrests from his favorite fishing hole at I-15 milepost 222 in Juab County, Paul also was responsible for the recovery of 146 stolen vehicles.

Paul became nationally renowned as an incomparable interdiction specialist, and his reputation was begrudging acknowledged by judges and appellate judges who simply could not accept that any single officer could be that consistently successful in his mission, while still operating within the boundaries of individual constitutional protections.  In a footnote in one Utah case, an appellate judge somewhat disparagingly referred to Trooper Mangleson’s skill set as even better than the notorious dog-detection dog, Maxx-25.  Ironically, and certainly most fittingly, that judge was in the audience with 140 other judges from across the state in 1994, when Trooper Paul Mangelson delivered a three-hour interdiction training at the annual state judicial conference at Snowbird, exposing the sophisticated techniques and methods of concealment and transport, and the detection evasion practices employed by international drug smugglers in Utah.  The training received a 5-star rating from the judges, and evidence suppression rates in appellate court drug cases after 1994 began to decline.  Coincidence?

Paul was first named the Utah Highway Patrol Officer of the year in 1978, and received 8 Golden Beehive and 6 Silver Beehive awards thereafter.  He was honored as the Utah Peace Officer Association Officer of the Year, and the National Exchange Club Peace Officer of the Year in 1982.  He is the recipient of the 1992 UNOA Robert B Hutchings Narcotic Officer of the Year in 1992.  Paul Mangelson was also recipient of the Rocky Mountain HIDTA Interdiction Officer of the Year for his ability to create prosecutable narcotics seizures.

As a testament to Paul’s enduring contribution to Utah law enforcement, in 2007 the Department of Public Safety created the Paul Mangelson Award, which is presented at the annual DPS Award Banquet to recognize the UHP Trooper who made the greatest contribution to the UHP interdiction program the previous year.  This award recognizes not only total interdiction seizures, but successful prosecution, mentoring, and professional contributions.  Paul was the first recipient of this award, and it has been awarded annually ever since 2007.

Paul’s intense focus upon narcotics interdiction on Utah’s highways will forever remain unparalleled in the annals of Utah law enforcement history.  UNOA proudly memorializes his illustrious career with this UNOA Legends in Law Enforcement Citation of Honor Award.