If you are experiencing a crisis, help is available. You can call the Northwest Human Services Hotline at 503.581.5535 or 1.800.560.5535. The National Suicide Prevention hotline is 988. Oregon teens can contact Lines for Life’s YouthLine daily from 4-10 p.m. to chat confidentially with a trained teen by texting 839863, calling 877-968-8491 or chatting online.
A police records technician witnessed an 80-year-old man fatally shoot himself in the lobby of the Salem Police Department station Saturday afternoon, according to the agency.
Police learned the man had a history of depression, but “there were no known significant health or life incidents he was presently facing,” department spokeswoman Angela Hedrick said in an email Monday afternoon.
The man walked into the station around 1 p.m. Saturday, pulled a shotgun out of a bag he carried and shot himself, the agency announced in a statement that evening.
Salem Reporter does not typically identify victims of suicide.
While the shooting occurred on Veterans Day, investigators found no connection between the man and the date of his suicide. They also found no link to the Salem police, according to Hedrick.
She said police could not establish the reason for the man’s actions or why he decided to go to the police station.
The man also did not have a criminal history.
The lobby where the shooting occurred is not ordinarily crowded with people and often has few employees present.
Salem police originally said the day of the shooting that the station lobby at 333 Division St. N.E. would be closed until Monday morning while police investigated. But the agency announced Sunday evening that the station entrance was still under repair and would not open as planned.
Meantime, residents can file a non-emergency police report by calling 503-588-6123 and selecting option one, or seek vehicle releases by calling 503-588-6144 and select option nine.
Police records can be requested on the city of Salem’s public records portal.
Original story below:
An 80-year-old man walked into the Salem Police Department station Saturday afternoon and fatally shot himself, the agency announced in a news release.
Salem police did not identify the man in their statement, saying the department does not typically name victims of suicide.
Around 1 p.m. Saturday, “a man entered the vestibule of the police station, removed a shotgun from the bag he carried and took his own life,” according to the statement.
Officers arrived moments later to find the man dead from the gunshot wound.
The police station lobby at 333 Division St. N.E. will be closed until Monday, Nov. 13, at 8 a.m. while police investigate the shooting.
Meantime, residents can file a non-emergency police report by calling 503-588-6123 and selecting option one, or seek vehicle releases by calling 503-588-6144 and select option nine.
Police records can be requested on the city of Salem’s public records portal.
If you are experiencing a crisis, help is available. You can call the Northwest Human Services Hotline at 503.581.5535 or 1.800.560.5535. The National Suicide Prevention hotline is 988. Oregon teens can contact Lines for Life’s YouthLine daily from 4-10 p.m. to chat confidentially with a trained teen by texting 839863, calling 877-968-8491 or chatting online.
Contact reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian: [email protected] or 503-929-3053.
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Ardeshir Tabrizian has covered criminal justice and housing for Salem Reporter since September 2021. As an Oregon native, his award-winning watchdog journalism has traversed the state. He has done reporting for The Oregonian, Eugene Weekly and Malheur Enterprise.
