Officer Gary R. Stroud, 26, was killed in the line of duty on October 24, 1977, in Saint Charles, Missouri. Stroud had served with the St. Charles Police Department for 18 months and was responding to a report of a man seen carrying a shotgun. Witnesses directed him to the location where the man had last been seen. As Stroud turned a corner in his patrol car, the suspect ran toward the vehicle and fired a shotgun through the windshield, striking Stroud in the chest.

The shooter fled but crashed his vehicle into a utility pole and was apprehended shortly afterward. He was convicted of capital murder and received a life sentence; he remained in prison until his death in 2016. Officer Stroud, a U.S. Army veteran, was survived by his wife, a son, and two daughters.

Does anyone have memories of Officer Stroud or the events in Saint Charles in 1977 to share?