Judge fines famous photographer $500 and orders him to make peace with Grand Teton National Park

From Mike Koshmrl

Immediately after Mark Carman announced Tom Mangelsen’s sentence, the federal judge held a clarifying conversation with the famous photographer, who was caught between one man in his final years and another man in his final years.

The judge who found the internationally known wildlife photographer guilty of a minor traffic violation last month reminded the 78-year-old Moose resident that “we all have a time going on.” He praised Mangelsen’s “incredible skills and photography” but encouraged him to use them to support the National Park Service.

“Do this in a way that doesn’t create conflict, but creates consensus,” Carman said in a sentencing hearing in U.S. District Court for Wyoming held via Zoom on Thursday. “You have the time to do it, you have the energy to do it, and you have the knowledge and skills to do it.”

“That is the result I hope for – not bitterness over a stupid little fine for a minor traffic violation,” the judge told Mangelsen. “Please listen to me.”

Earlier at the hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ariel Calmes had requested that Mangelsen be sentenced to one year of unsupervised probation, plus such fines as the court deemed appropriate—the maximum would have been $5,000.

“This behavior must be stopped,” she said.

Carman opted for a less severe sentence: a $500 fine and no probation.

The reason for the citation – obstructing traffic – was also minor. But the circumstances were extraordinary. Mangelsen was cited on the evening of Oct. 9 for repeatedly driving slowly in front of Grizzly 610, the well-known daughter of the world-famous Grizzly 399. Grizzly 610 had just been struck by a vehicle on the highway and was lying almost motionless on the ground, but later made a full recovery, the Jackson Hole News&Guide reported.

Mangelsen’s defense in the minor traffic violation was equally extraordinary. During a day-long hearing in early June, his attorney, Ed Bushnell, spent hours questioning and cross-examining witnesses and reviewing evidence such as bodycam footage, cellphone videos and crime scene plans. The photographer estimated he spent as much as $20,000 on the defense, and the massive effort continued until the verdict, which lasted more than an hour.

Bushnell invited retired Grand Teton police officer Chris Flaherty to testify as a character witness for Mangelsen. The retiree testified that Mangelsen did what the rangers on the scene that day — bear management specialist Tyler Brasington and police officer Brett Timm — were supposed to do: slow down traffic. The three cubs of the injured grizzly bears were on the run during the incident.

“Safety always comes first, and not slowing traffic was mismanagement or non-management of the accident scene,” Flaherty said. “The bottom line is, if the accident scene had been managed properly, we wouldn’t be sitting here having this conversation right now.”

However, in his reasoning for Mangelsen’s verdict, Carman stated that the case was neither about appropriate handling of grizzly bears on the side of the road nor about the photographer becoming a target.

“This case is about a traffic ticket,” he said. “I am convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that you were obstructing traffic. I believe you did it intentionally because you wanted to protect the bears.”

Mangelsen is still considering whether to appeal, he said on Thursday afternoon.

He is not sure whether the photographer will follow Carman’s advice and work more closely with the National Park Service.

“That’s a nice idea,” said Mangelsen. However, finding a common denominator is “a pipe dream,” he said.

Mangelsen is convinced that he is right.

“In my opinion, I should never have received that subpoena,” he said. “It was retaliation and revenge and retribution.”

This article was originally published by WyoFile and is republished here with permission. WyoFile is an independent, nonprofit news organization focused on the people, places and politics of Wyoming.

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