Doyle Reed Thorne

Utah Highway Patrol — Salt Lake City, UT

Veteran → Veteran → Accident

End of Watch July 30, 1994

Age 52

Tour of Duty 19 yrs

Badge 118

The Vigil Panel 140 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Military Department 15

Incident

Sergeant Thorne was killed when his helicopter crashed while he was searching for a two-year-old girl. After the girl was located Sergeant Thorne started returning to Salt Lake City when he radioed in a distress call and disappeared from radar. The wreckage was located three days later. Sergeant Thorne was a Vietnam War veteran and had been with the agency for 19 years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife, two sons, and two daughters.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-UT-A4627FF8
Stewardship: Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw: August 2, 2026
Last updated: August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Sergeant Thorne gave the Utah Highway Patrol 19 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of Utah, and for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Department Utah Highway Patrol

Type Highway Patrol

Location Salt Lake City, UT

Platform Identity uhp.ut.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch July 30, 1994

Tour of Duty 19 yrs

Age 52

Badge Number 118

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Military Service

Doyle Reed Thorne served in the the United States military (1966â1976) before joining law enforcement.

View full service record on salute.nw →

Sergeant Doyle Reed Thorne is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,759 officers honored here.

In UT, 49 of 138 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 35.5% of this state's fallen. That is 35.5 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Utah Highway Patrol, 9 of 16 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 56.3% of this agency's fallen.

Utah Highway Patrol

of 16 officers

56.3% Accident

UT — Statewide

of 138 officers

35.5% Accident

Nationwide

of 97,759 officers

0% Accident