lit a candle 5h agoMy cousin in Richfield used to mail me the Reaper clippings every time Chief Evans was quoted about something at the city council, Neighborhood Watch, the Code Red system, all of it. Never met the man, never been to Utah, but I felt like I knew that town through him. 72 is no age. Sad news to read with my coffee this morning.
Their story
John Thomas Evans was a police officer who served his hometown of Richfield, Utah, for just over 40 years, from 1976 to 2016, nearly 18 of them as chief of police. Born and raised in Richfield, the seat of Sevier County in central Utah, he spent his whole law enforcement…
John Thomas Evans was a police officer who served his hometown of Richfield, Utah, for just over 40 years, from 1976 to 2016, nearly 18 of them as chief of police. Born and raised in Richfield, the seat of Sevier County in central Utah, he spent his whole law enforcement career with the city's police department and became, in the words of Richfield City, a caring and dedicated leader who seemed to know just about everyone in town.
Evans joined the Richfield Police Department in 1976. He was promoted to lieutenant in about 1985 and spent most of the following years working narcotics cases. In 1988 he was selected as Utah's Law Enforcement Officer of the Year. When Chief Mayor Jacobsen retired in March 1999, the city appointed Evans interim chief. He had said in the past that he was not interested in the job, but he applied for it, was given the post and went on to lead the department into the 2010s.
As chief he was the public face of policing in a small city, briefing reporters on local emergencies and presenting programmes such as Neighborhood Watch and the Code Red emergency alert system to the city council. He and his officer Trent Lloyd, later his successor, also worked the disappearance of Melanie Layton Callison, a missing person case that was solved in less than two and a half months. The two found the remote campsite east of Richfield where her remains were recovered, and her husband was sent to prison for her murder in 2014.
Evans retired in 2016 after four decades in uniform with the same department. Trent Lloyd, who became chief, described him as a mentor who had guided him in his career and in life and family, and said he had become family to him.
Evans died in Richfield on 21 October 2026, aged 72. Richfield City and the Richfield Police Department announced his death on 23 October, saying he had made a lasting difference in the lives of so many. His cause of death was not made public. Magleby Mortuary in Richfield is handling the arrangements, and services were pending at the time of the announcement.
Biography adapted from Richfield City and Richfield Police Department (via Gephardt Daily, 23 October 2026); Magleby Mortuary; Deseret News (1999); ABC4 Utah; KSL.
In their own words
“He was a caring and dedicated leader who seemed to know just about everyone in town.”
Richfield City announcement of his death, 23 October 2026 (Gephardt Daily)
Photos
1Former Richfield Police Chief John Evans
by People Forever
That's exactly the kind of chief he was, worth clipping out.