Stabbings at Salem pool hall leave 1 man dead, another injured
A fight early Thursday morning at a pool hall east of downtown Salem resulted in two stabbings that left a young man dead and another injured.
Around 1 a.m. Thursday, police responded to a report that two stabbing victims had arrived at Salem Hospital’s emergency room “in need of immediate care,” according to a statement from the Salem Police Department.
One victim, Isac S. Rizo, 21, of Salem, died at the hospital from his injuries. The second victim, a 20-year-old man who police did not name in the statement, was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
The stabbings happened during a fight between a group of young men at The Cue Ball, a pool hall located at 1262 State St., according to the police statement. The pool hall is within one block of Willamette University and the Willamette Heritage Center.
The statement provided few details about the stabbings, including what prompted the altercation or whether the two victims knew each other.
Detectives are investigating Rizo’s death as homicide, the statement said. Homicide as a manner of death would not necessarily mean that the killing was a criminal act.
Contact reporter Madeleine Moore: [email protected].
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Madeleine Moore came to Salem after graduating from the University of Oregon in June 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She covers addiction and recovery, transportation and infrastructure.
