Today, Oct. 6, marks four years since Officer Blake Snyder was murdered on duty while responding to a call in Green Park, but his memory lives on in South County through several permanent memorials that have been dedicated in his honor.
Snyder was ambushed and shot to death Oct. 6, 2016, by Trenton Forster, a troubled 18-year-old who was convicted of first-degree murder in February 2019 and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Unlike the very public outpouring of grief at the time of Snyder’s death, commemorative gatherings are difficult to organize this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic so no public memorials are planned besides two fundraising golf tournaments.
For the fourth anniversary, The Call took a look back at when two of the most permanent honors given to Snyder were dedicated two years ago, near the two-year anniversary of Snyder’s death: The sign noting Gravois Road in front of the longtime Affton Southwest Precinct where Snyder was based is now officially called “Officer Blake C. Snyder Memorial Highway,” and the naming of Green Park’s Community Room at City Hall.
