Jackson Weller photo courtesy of Rafael Grullon’s Twitter account.
Editor's Note: This story was updated at 3:27 p.m. to include developments and provide additional context.
Jackson Weller, a 23 year-old University of New Mexico Baseball Player, is dead after a shooting outside Imbibe Nightclub in Nob Hill early Saturday morning.
Weller was a transfer from Gateway Community College in Arizona. He had not yet appeared for the Lobos after joining the program in the fall of 2018 and was sitting out this season due to injury. He had plans to rejoin the program next fall, according to an Albuquerque Journal story. Weller was a Junior studying Liberal Arts.
UNM spokeswoman Cinnamon Blair identified Weller as the person killed on Saturday.
“He was a very special young man whose absence will be deeply felt. On behalf of Lobo Athletics and The University of New Mexico, I would like to extend our sincerest condolences to his family, friends, teammates and all who knew him – please keep them in your thoughts and prayers,” Athletic Director Eddie Nuñez said in a release. “Our immediate focus will be on continuing to support all who are affected as they cope with this senseless tragedy.”
Officers responded at 2:15 a.m. to the incident and found a man dead, spokesman Tanner Tixier told the Journal. There are no suspects at this time.
The Lobos lost the first of a three game series to Air Force on Friday night. Game two was scheduled for today. The remainder of the series has been postponed according to the Athletics Department. An announcement as to when the series will resume has not been made.
The sudden loss of Weller prompted an outpouring of support and anger online.
The Albuquerque Isotopes and San Diego State University baseball teams offered their condolences to Weller’s family and friends. Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller tweeted that he was “saddened and angered” by the news.
Back at UNM, Lobo Spirit, UNM Greeks and the University's Main Campus Twitter sent out their condolences toward Weller’s family.
Weller’s death comes in a year that has seen over 100 shootings in Bernalillo County within the first four months of 2019. On April 29, the Albuquerque Journal reported that 114 people had been shot in 112 days, according to data provided by the District Attorney’s Office.
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The DA’s office said that 95 of those shootings were in Albuquerque and, as of April 23, 17 people had died. Compared to the same period last year, 2019 has seen 27 more shootings.
Justin Garcia contributed to this article.
Cameron Goeldner is a senior reporter and photographer for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers men’s soccer, women’s basketball, softball and the Albuquerque Isotopes, but also contributes content for all other sports. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @goeldfinger.
