Mayo Clinic: Lake City Officer Wounded By Gunman Dies
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The Lake City police officer who suffered a gunshot wound to the head earlier this month died Friday evening, according to a Mayo Clinic spokesperson.
Patrol Officer Shawn Schneider, 32, was shot in the head on Dec. 19 by a 25-year-old gunman while responding to a domestic disturbance involving a handgun in Lake City.
He succumbed to his wounds at around 5:30 p.m. at St. Marys Hospital in Rochester, according to the Wabasha County Sherriff's Office.
Schneider, who served the Lake City Police Department since 2003, is survived by his wife and three children.
Lake City is a 10-member police force and has not had an officer shot since the late 1970s.
Alan J. Sylte Jr., of Hager City, Wis., shot Schneider as Schneider approached the home at which the disturbance was reported. Sylte fired two shots, one of which struck Schneider in the head.
After a day-long standoff, authorities found Sylte dead on the house's second floor, where he likely suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, police said.
A 17-year-old girl who escaped the house said she had broken up with Sylte the week before.
Sylte was an Iraq war veteran in the process of being discharged, according to the Wisconsin National Guard.
The Lake City community rallied behind Schneider. The school at which his young children study sent him handmade cards and his supporters held a candlelight vigil outside the Mayo Clinic. On Facebook, the Prayer Page for Officer Shawn Schneider received more than 5,000 "Likes."
On that page, there are hundreds of comments made by those who are mourning his death.
A fund has been set up to help Officer Schneider's family. Donations can be sent to:
Shawn Schneider Fund
Alliance Bank
105 E. Lyon Avenue
Lake City, MN 55041
