Chris Henry of the Cincinnati Bengals died on Dec. 17, 2009, after falling off the back of a pickup truck during what police are calling a domestic dispute with his fiancée. He was 26 years old.
MONTREAL – The National Football League is sending out the wrong message by asking teams to observe a moment of silence before this weekend's games to honour Cincinnati Bengals wide-receiver Chris Henry.
Henry's death this week was a tragedy, but all the evidence suggests Henry, who was once the poster boy for the National Felon League, was committing a criminal act when he was thrown from the back of a moving truck.
Police in North Carolina reported Henry and his fiancée were involved in a domestic dispute before she attempted to drive away. Henry jumped into the bed of the truck and a woman who called 911 reported he was banging on the rear window. "It's just crazy," the caller said.
If the police had intercepted the vehicle before Henry was thrown from the truck, there's a good chance he would have been arrested. And, instead of asking teams to honour Henry today, commissioner Roger Goodell would be suspending the receiver for the fourth time in his troubled career.
Domestic violence is a major problem in our society and Goodell's decision is an insult to every woman who has been a victim of spousal abuse.
In the hours after his death, much was made of the way Henry had turned his life around, but the hours before his death suggest he had stopped short of 180 degrees.
It was interesting to hear his college coach say Henry was never a problem. Except maybe for that time he was ejected from a game, or maybe the time he was suspended for another game. Henry was such a problem that he went from being a first-round draft prospect to a third-round pick.
During his NFL career, Henry was arrested five times in 28 months for assault, driving under the influence of alcohol and marijuana possession, and he served multiple suspensions for violating the league's personal-conduct policy, missing a total of 14 games. He served jail time for drinking in a hotel room with underage girls.
After serving an eight-game suspension in 2007 for violating the league's personal-conduct policy, he was arrested again for assault in April 2008. He was waived by the Bengals, and a local judge told Henry: "You've kind of become a one-man crime wave."
The Bengals gave Henry, a second - or was it a fourth of fifth? - chance. They did so, not because general manager Mike Brown is a social worker at heart, but because Henry had talent. He played well for eight games before breaking his arm, but in the end he proved he was one tiger who couldn't change his stripes.
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Showing posts with label death. Show all posts
Showing posts with label death. Show all posts
Man attempts to steal under 300 bucks worth of stuff, and now he's dead! SMH
Wal-Mart should have just let this man go... now, his family is going to sue the crap out of them.
Alleged Wal-Mart shoplifter dies after scuffle with store cops
By Christian Boone
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
6:45 p.m. Monday, December 21, 2009
Dunwoody Police are investigating the death Saturday of an alleged shoplifter after he was forcibly apprehended by Wal-Mart loss prevention officers.
Marty Bridges, 38, was attempting to flee the store, at 4725 Ashford Dunwoody Rd., when the officers grabbed him, Dunwoody Police spokesman Sgt. Mike Carlson said. Another shopper intervened and a slight altercation ensued.
"It was basically a big pile-up," he said. "They had him pinned on the ground to keep him from running."
When police arrived around 1 p.m., two bystanders were administering CPR, but they were unable to save Bridges. He was pronounced dead shortly after being transported to Northside Hospital.
It's unclear what Bridges allegedly tried to steal, but Carlson said the amount of the item or items was less than $300, and would have amounted to a misdemeanor were he tried and convicted of shop lifting.
Wal-Mart employees were able to recover the item or items, police said.
It doesn't appear that any undue force was used on the suspect, Carlson said. An autopsy is underway.
Return to AJC.com for updates.
-- Staff reporter Marcus K. Garner contributed to this story.
Alleged Wal-Mart shoplifter dies after scuffle with store cops
By Christian Boone
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
6:45 p.m. Monday, December 21, 2009
Dunwoody Police are investigating the death Saturday of an alleged shoplifter after he was forcibly apprehended by Wal-Mart loss prevention officers.
Marty Bridges, 38, was attempting to flee the store, at 4725 Ashford Dunwoody Rd., when the officers grabbed him, Dunwoody Police spokesman Sgt. Mike Carlson said. Another shopper intervened and a slight altercation ensued.
"It was basically a big pile-up," he said. "They had him pinned on the ground to keep him from running."
When police arrived around 1 p.m., two bystanders were administering CPR, but they were unable to save Bridges. He was pronounced dead shortly after being transported to Northside Hospital.
It's unclear what Bridges allegedly tried to steal, but Carlson said the amount of the item or items was less than $300, and would have amounted to a misdemeanor were he tried and convicted of shop lifting.
Wal-Mart employees were able to recover the item or items, police said.
It doesn't appear that any undue force was used on the suspect, Carlson said. An autopsy is underway.
Return to AJC.com for updates.
-- Staff reporter Marcus K. Garner contributed to this story.
