Isaiah Hixon was a 32-year-old Black man known and loved by many in his Johnstown, Pennsylvania, community. A business owner who ran the Lavish Ink tattoo shop and also laid concrete, he was described by his girlfriend of nine years, Khadija Salazar, as a family man who was especially good with children. She called his death “gut-wrenching and heartbreaking,” noting that Hixon’s children were struggling deeply with the loss, especially his youngest son, who was a “spitting image of his father.”
In the early morning of October 6, 2024, Hixon had stopped to talk with people on the 900 block of Ash Street in Johnstown’s Hornerstown section. At approximately 2:30 a.m., a vehicle drove up, and someone inside opened fire in an ambush that lasted only a few seconds. Hixon was struck by multiple gunshots. He was rushed to Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead from massive blood loss. The Cambria County Coroner ruled his death a homicide.
Two other people were wounded in the drive-by shooting but were expected to survive.
Authorities quickly determined that the shooting was a targeted act, but they believed Isaiah Hixon was not the intended victim. Both the Cambria County District Attorney and the coroner described him as an “innocent bystander” who was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Johnstown police launched an investigation, appealing to the public for tips and any available surveillance footage to help them find who was responsible.
The investigation, aided by tips from the community and fingerprint evidence found inside a Jeep Compass, led police to a suspect. They arrested 23-year-old Jamil Quhir Branche in connection with the shooting. He was charged with criminal homicide, three counts of aggravated assault, three counts of reckless endangerment, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and carrying a firearm without a license.
Following extensive plea negotiations, Jamil Branche, then 25, accepted a plea deal that was approved by Hixon’s family and one of the other shooting victims. He pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and two counts of aggravated assault for his role in the fatal shooting. Under the terms of the agreement, Branche faced a sentence of 14 to 40 years in prison. In exchange for his plea, seven other charges were slated to be dropped following his sentencing hearing, which was scheduled for March 2025.
