Family of Pace student seeks federal intervention

THORNWOOD

The Henry family is not happy that information about the 20-year-old's blood alcohol level was leaked to the media. Sources last week said it was .13, well over the legal limit.

Michael Sussman, a civil rights attorney representing the Henry family, wrote the investigation is "fatally flawed and that an independent investigation is required to insure that the truth about what happened is determined and revealed."

The letter addressed to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder was sent just over a week after the shooting in Thornwood, Westchester County.

According to The Journal News, Henry was shot by police three times during the early morning hours of Sunday, October 17.

Police fired and hit the 20-year-old twice in the chest and once in the shoulder, according to the report.

We know that two of the responding police officers fired their guns, but, according to The Journal News, it's still not known whose shots struck Henry.

Mount Pleasant police are leading the investigation into the shooting with the help of the state police. The Henry family believes it is time for the Justice Department to step in.

In a letter to Westchester County District Attorney Janet Difiori , Sussman wrote it is appropriate to determine if "racial bias and stereotyping played any role in the death of Mr. Henry and whether federal civil rights laws may have been violated in this instance."

A memorial service for Henry will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, which would have been his 21st birthday, in Boston.

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