Rene B. Lopez
Rene B. Lopez, 31, died on September 17, 2026, while held at Pelican Bay State Prison in Crescent City, California. Staff found him unresponsive in a housing unit, and he was pronounced dead that evening. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said other incarcerated people attacked him and is investigating his death as a homicide with the prison's investigative unit and the Del Norte County District Attorney's Office. Officials said surveillance footage shows five people working together in the attack, and five people have been placed in restricted housing while the case is investigated.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody. CDCR says other incarcerated people attacked him with makeshift weapons or stabbed him, captured on surveillance video, and is investigating the death as a homicide.
Reported by: California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (the agency that held him). The only account of how this person died comes from the agency that held him.
News reports (4)
- Pelican Bay State Prison Officials Investigating Death of Incarcerated Person as a Homicide - News Releases - California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
- CDCR investigates Pelican Bay inmate Rene B. Lopez’s death as homicide
- L.A. County inmate killed in coordinated attack at Pelican Bay State Prison, officials say
- State Prison Officials Announce Another Inmate Death Allegedly Tied To Prisoners From IE