Lewis Thomas Snyder
Agency patch
Night Watchman

Lewis Thomas Snyder

Roscoe Police Department — Roscoe, TX
Felonious
End of Watch August 4, 1966
Age 65
Tour of Duty 1 yrs
The Vigil Panel 101 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Night Watchman Lewis Snyder was shot and killed with his own weapon after surprising a juvenile burglary suspect at a local store.

The suspect approached Watchman Snyder, who was still sitting in his patrol car, and pointed an empty gun at him. The boy then took the marshal's .45 caliber service revolver, ordered him from the car, and then shot him three times.

The suspect fled to Fort Worth, where he was apprehended the following day; he was convicted and sentenced to 10 years probation.

Watchman Snyder had served with the Roscoe Police Department for a year and had previously worked as a railroad engineer.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife, five daughters, a son, and 10 grandchildren.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-TX-B66C3325
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

You barely got started.
Night Watchman Snyder gave the Roscoe Police Department 1 year.
Thank you for your service to the Roscoe community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Night Watchman Snyder.

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

Agency

Type Police Department
Location Roscoe, Nolan County, TX
Platform Identity rpd.nolan.tx.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch August 4, 1966
Tour of Duty 1 yrs
Age 65
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Cause Detail Gunfire
Weapon Officer's handgun

Night Watchman Lewis Thomas Snyder is one of 1 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In TX, 1,461 of 2,422 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 60.3% of this state's fallen. That is 60.3 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

Roscoe Police Department
1
of 1 officers
100% Felonious
TX — Statewide
1,461
of 2,422 officers
60.3% Felonious
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Felonious

National Cause Distribution

How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Lewis Thomas Snyder's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How Lewis Thomas Snyder Compares

Age at Death
65
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years
Years of Service
1
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 8.4 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Lewis Thomas Snyder is highlighted in Aug.

Jan
1,392
Feb
1,295
Mar
1,373
Apr
1,516
May
1,504
Jun
1,442
Jul
1,587
Aug
1,517
Sep
1,491
Oct
1,371
Nov
1,447
Dec
1,624

Weapons Used Against Officers

Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Lewis Thomas Snyder was killed by officer's handgun.

Handgun
3,684
Gun
3,592
Gun; Unknown type
1,492
Shotgun
1,109
Rifle
935
Officer's handgun
909

Others Who Wore This Badge

0 officers from Roscoe Police Department are honored on badge.nw.