Published October 19, 2010
Danroy Henry played football for Pace University. (courtesy photo)
Westchester County District Attorney Janet DiFiore says she is confident her investigation will reveal exactly what happened outside a bar north of New York City early Sunday morning.
Police shot dead Danroy “D.J.” Henry, a 20-year-old from Easton who played football at Pace University.
The authorities say Henry had been parked in a fire lane outside the bar when he sped away from officers who were rapping on his car window, hitting one who clung to the hood as the sedan barreled toward a colleague. That’s when an officer opened fire.
Mount Pleasant Police Chief Louis Alagno said the officers handcuffed Henry after shooting him — only to discover his condition and then try to save his life.
“This is a nightmare for everyone involved,” Alagno told CNN today.
On Sunday, Boston.com posted a detailed police of the incident:
Police from Mount Pleasant said in a statement that one of their officers approached Henry’s vehicle, which was parked in a fire lane, and Henry sped away when the officer knocked on the driver’s window.
Then a police officer from Pleasantville, another section of Mount Pleasant, then tried to stop the car, according to police. But the driver, identified by Pace as Henry, kept accelerating and struck the officer who landed on the hood of the vehicle.
A second Mount Pleasant officer tried to grab the Pleasantville officer from the hood, police said, but that officer was also struck by the car.
The Pleasantville officer, still clinging to the hood, then fired at Henry, the statement said.
The car headed towards another Mount Pleasant officer, who fired at the vehicle, police said, and the car came to a stop after striking a Mount Pleasant cruiser. Authorities did not identify by name which police officers fired the shots.
Henry was pronounced dead at the scene, police said, and a passenger in his car sustained a minor gunshot wound.
That last detail is key: The passenger in Henry’s car — Brandon Cox — survived, which allows for a different account of what happened. An article in today’s Globe quotes Thomas Parks, Cox’s father:
Parks said the men thought the police wanted them to move because the car was parked in a fire lane.
When Henry began to drive away, a police officer jumped in front of the car, his weapon drawn, Parks said. The officer threw himself on the hood and started shooting, the father said.
The New York state major crimes unit has joined in the investigation. The results of that investigation will be brought before a grand jury to determine whether the officers will face charges, Chief Algano told the Globe.
Related Stories: