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Pace player honored amid quest for ‘truth’
Mourners remember ‘family first’ mentality
By Marie Szaniszlo | Saturday, October 30, 2010 | http://www.bostonherald.com | Local Coverage
Photo by Christopher Evans
Two weeks after he was shot to death by police outside a Mount Pleasant, N.Y., bar, more than 2,000 people crowded into the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center yesterday to remember the birthday Danroy Henry Jr. never lived to see.
The Pace University football player would have turned 21 yesterday. And so his family, friends and teammates celebrated his life, even as they wrestled with questions about his death.
“We have been overwhelmed by love and support as we continue to search for the truth,” his mother, Angela Henry, said as she looked out across the sea of faces in front of her. “As his mother, I wanted to do everything I could for him. . . . I just pray you do the same for your kids.”
Henry was shot at about 1 a.m. Oct. 17 after he allegedly struck a police officer with the car he and 20-year-old Brandon Cox were in. Two officers opened fire, killing Henry and grazing his childhood friend.
Police have said Henry took off, hitting the officer, while witnesses have said the officer jumped in front of the vehicle.
While New York State Police and the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office investigate, Henry’s family and witnesses have called for federal oversight of the probe since blood-alcohol test results were leaked, showing he had a level of 0.13, above the legal limit.
Michael Sussman, the attorney representing the Easton family, this week said he expects the Westchester County Medical Examiner’s Office to turn over a blood sample to a lab for independent toxicology analysis. No drugs or alcohol were found in the car, Sussman said.
Yesterday, Danroy Henry Sr. jokingly remembered his son as an excruciatingly slow eater who would order two entrees when they went out to dinner and, if he particularly liked his meal, “quietly hum” his approval.
His younger brother remembered his impeccable sense of style and $400 Gucci shoes.
His younger sister remembered him as her “hero.”
When his father learned he had gotten a tattoo, the elder Henry “was ready to go off on him,” Bishop G.A. Thompson of Jubilee Christian Church recalled, “but when he saw the words, ‘Family First,’ he said, ‘How can I get mad at that?’ ”
On the football field, Henry came to compete because he loved what he was doing, his Pace University coach, Chris Dapolito, said, adding “His play inspired others.”
Article URL: http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1292513
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