The death of an unarmed Black college student who was shot by a white New York police officer is getting renewed national attention as high-profile musicians Jay-Z and Rihanna, as well as Cleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., have joined the victim’s family to demand that the 10-year-old case be reopened.
“The facts support this request, the law all but requires it, and justice — it demands it,” the letter reads. “But like so many other unarmed and innocent young Black men who find themselves guilty of being at the wrong place at the wrong time, DJ, too, lost his life for no good reason and with absolutely no good explanation — to this very day. Justice, it appears, has been denied.”
After instructing him to stop the car, Hess said, Henry’s car came right at him, and the officer landed on its hood. Hess claims Henry tried to run him over and, fearing for his life, fired his weapon through the windshield to stop him. Other witnesses offered a different account of the incident, saying the Altima was braking when Hess stepped in front of it.
The case was brought before a New York grand jury where Hess, who received an Officer of the Year award months later from the Police Benevolent Association of the Pleasantville, N.Y., Police Department for his “dignity and professionalism” in the months after the fatal shooting, was cleared of wrongdoing. But newer details led DJ’s family and supporters to have more questions than answers.
But Hess’s attorney, Brian Sokoloff, says this information is not new. “Officer Beckley’s testimony is not new evidence,” Sokoloff told Yahoo News. “He testified before the grand jury. … [Beckley] did not see officer Hess get on the hood of the car, so the first time he saw officer Hess was on the car. The fact that he thought the officer was the aggressor is not a thing.”
A college friend of Henry’s, Johanie Menendez, is pushing a Change.org petition to “Re-Open DJ Henry’s Case.” As of Thursday afternoon, it had more than 269,000 signatures. She remembers the impact that DJ’s death had on the campus. “It was like Nipsey or [rapper] Pop Smoke died,” she said. “The entire mood on campus was different. There was a somberness. The Halloween after [his death] was around DJ’s birthday and people were out, but it wasn’t the same because it’s, like, DJ should be here.
This was kept quiet. The protests need to continue. God help us.