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Friend's Alleged Punch Kills Norwood Man Outside Former Rockland Bar

Two familiar families -- both coming from lines of Bergen County first responders -- are now grieving following the death of a young Norwood man after authorities said he was knocked unconscious by his friend outside a former Rockland County bar.

The site of the former Horse & Jockey on West Central Avenue. INSET: The Saloon, just up the street.

The site of the former Horse & Jockey on West Central Avenue. INSET: The Saloon, just up the street.

Photo Credit: Googlemaps

Assault charges were expected to be upgraded to manslaughter against 21-year-old Douglas Guido, a Norwood native living in Hasbrouck Heights, following the death of his friend, RJ Hess.

The two had been together at the Saloon on West Central Avenue in Pearl River in the pre-dawn hours of June 23 when they were asked to leave, a source close to the families told Daily Voice.

Both were in an alleyway next to what had been the Horse & Jockey up the street when Guido claims Hess pushed him from behind, snapping his neck back, just after 3 a.m.

Guido "turned around and cold-cocked him," a law enforcement source said. "[Hess] was unconscious on the way down and hit the back of his head on a cement curb."

He was taken to Nyack Hospital by Pearl River Ambulance Corps and Rockland Paramedic Services, then transferred to Westchester Medical Center, where he died Sunday, Orangetown police said.

Guido, meanwhile, was released after posting $2,500 bail, they said.

Hess -- whose father, Richard, is a retired Norwood fire chief -- was buried Monday. No wake was held.

Guido's father is a retired Bergen County sheriff's officer. His grandfather is a retired Bergen County Police Department lieutenant.

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