Roll of Honor
Incident
Chief George Snyder suffered a fatal heart attack shortly after struggling with a suspect on Wood Street.
He and several officers had just finished processing the arrest of 15 men for gambling when he was notified of a fight on Wood Street. When he arrived at the scene he encountered a combative man who was bleeding from his head. The man began to struggle with Chief Snyder but was subdued with the help of two firemen.
Chief Snyder began to feel ill immediately after the arrest and was taken to his home, where he passed away several hours later.
Chief Snyder had served with the Wilkinsburg Police Department for six years. He was a widower and survived by his four children and two brothers.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-PA-76DEDB1C- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Chief of Police Snyder gave the Wilkinsburg Borough Police Department 6 years.
Thank you for your service to the Wilkinsburg community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Chief of Police Snyder.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Chief of Police George W. Snyder is one of 1,306 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 4% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In PA, 118 of 1,261 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 9.4% of this state's fallen. That is 5.4 percentage points above the national rate of 4%.
At Wilkinsburg Borough Police Department, 1 of 2 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 50% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Cardiac compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. George W. Snyder's cause is highlighted.
How George W. Snyder Compares
When Cardiac Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Cardiac deaths across the full memorial record. George W. Snyder is highlighted in May.
Others Who Wore This Badge
1 officer from Wilkinsburg Borough Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
