11/21/24
December 16, 2009
Bengals Receiver Chris Henry Dies After Car Accident: Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry has died in the hospital after a car accident Wednesday in which he fell from the bed of a pick-up truck being driven by his girlfriend near Charlotte, N.C. Henry, 26, reportedly suffered head injuries in the incident and arrived at the hospital in critical condition. Henry, a third-round pick in the 2005 NFL Draft out of West Virginia, caught 119 passes and 21 touchdowns during his five-year pro career.
posted by cletus7777 to football at 09:45 PM - 72 comments
from a Yahoo site: Police say Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chris Henry has suffered serious injuries after falling out of the back of a pickup truck during a domestic dispute with his fiance. Police say Henry jumped into the bed of the pickup truck as his unidentified fiance was driving away from a home. The domestic dispute continued and Henry eventually fell out of the truck.
Damn. If someone is leaving in a motor vehicle...let them.
posted by dviking at 10:54 PM on December 16, 2009
Unfortunately, the incident happened in Charlotte, NC, which seems to be the snakebit epicenter of lethal NFL domestic disputes - Fred Lane, Rae Carruth, etc. Someone must have altered the magnetic field of the earth in that area. Bad stuff just seems to happen there.
posted by beaverboard at 12:17 AM on December 17, 2009
It's now being reported that Mr. Henry died a few hours ago.
posted by NoMich at 10:08 AM on December 17, 2009
It's now being reported that Mr. Henry died a few hours ago.
I just heard the same thing, what a shame.
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posted by BornIcon at 10:17 AM on December 17, 2009
Sad story, and the papers don't seem to know what happened yet. Although the domestic dispute involving Tiger Woods has been fodder for jokes -- including the infamous one at the Jaguars game -- Henry's death shows how volatile this stuff can be.
posted by rcade at 10:39 AM on December 17, 2009
That sucks. It's not terribly surprising that Henry's life ended early under somewhat bizarre circumstances, but it still sucks.
posted by Ufez Jones at 10:58 AM on December 17, 2009
Yes I am a Steelers fan, but I hope this doesnt destroy the Bengals team this year.
posted by Debo270 at 11:04 AM on December 17, 2009
What a total drag to find out that this went to the ultimate cost. I don't know to what degree Henry had gotten his act turned around, but it seems like he was trying to make changes and do better. I hate to see that brought to an end.
While Henry was around, Chad 85 did everything possible to be the main attention getter in Bengal country, but Henry was the one who made a few catches that had me wondering: did I just see what I think I saw?
That guy was talented. What a shame that he never was able to have an extended period of time when he had everything headed in the right direction.
posted by beaverboard at 11:18 AM on December 17, 2009
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posted by yzelda4045 at 11:53 AM on December 17, 2009
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posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 11:56 AM on December 17, 2009
That sucks. Damnit. My thoughts to his kids, as well as the entire Bengal family. RIP "Slim."
posted by tahoemoj at 12:02 PM on December 17, 2009
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posted by tommybiden at 12:05 PM on December 17, 2009
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posted by dfleming at 12:23 PM on December 17, 2009
What a shame. Sounds like he was finally getting his life together. Terrible waste.
posted by txsoccermom at 12:33 PM on December 17, 2009
"What a shame. Sounds like he was finally getting his life together".
No offense to anybody and I do feel bad for his family and friends, but the fact this happened points to the fact that he really wasn't getting his life or behavior together.
Having a fiance, children, a home and a incredibly lucrative career in the NFL is a together life. Almost blowing it numerous times with bad behavior, and arrests, then eventually blowing it for good is not finally getting it together. It is pretty easy to piece together what happened here and I have a feeling that arrows will point to the cause being - the samebad behavior being repeated yet again.
posted by Atheist at 12:55 PM on December 17, 2009
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posted by paulus andronicus at 01:03 PM on December 17, 2009
It is pretty easy to piece together what happened here
An incurable case of non-white-middleclassness? You have a wonderful gift for never walking a mile in anyone else's shoes, choosing instead to remain on a treadmill to nowhere. I have no idea if Chris Henry was acting the fool or acting out of passion for his fiancee when he chased down her car. Neither do you.
posted by yerfatma at 01:06 PM on December 17, 2009
It is pretty easy to piece together what happened here
I have no idea if Chris Henry was acting the fool or acting out of passion for his fiancee when he chased down her car. Neither do you.
Amen.
You don't know what happened and don't justify your assumptions of what happened just because he acted a fool in the past. There's alot of maybe's you're throwing around as to what you assume happened but the only thing we do know for a fact as to what transpired is that Chris Henry died.
posted by BornIcon at 01:25 PM on December 17, 2009
What a shame, but he died just like he lived his life.( Doing stupid things). God bless those that he left behind.
posted by Doehead at 02:21 PM on December 17, 2009
Atheist, it's not like he shot himself in the leg at a strip club. We've heard nothing about drinking, drugs, etc... Would he have been a better person to you if he had turned his back on his kids and fiancee?
Have some class for a change dude.
posted by LostInDaJungle at 02:22 PM on December 17, 2009
My deepest condolences to his friends, family and teammates. I hope the Bengals can rally around this tragedy and win for Chris... and I too am a Steelers' fan.
posted by scully at 02:28 PM on December 17, 2009
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posted by boredom_08 at 02:50 PM on December 17, 2009
It is pretty easy to piece together what happened here ...
So piece it together for us before the media figures it out, since it's so easy. Tell us exactly how the guy fell out of a truck and sustained fatal head injuries a little before noon. I'll be damned if I can come up with any explanation.
posted by rcade at 02:54 PM on December 17, 2009
Tell us exactly how the guy fell out of a truck and sustained fatal head injuries a little before noon. I'll be damned if I can come up with any explanation.
I'll try.
She's leaving.
Reason? No clue.
He jumps into the back of the truck to get her to stop.
Either she doesn't notice or doesn't care, and simply accelerates (possibly around a corner). Conservation of momentum suggests he keeps going in a different direction and tumbles out of the vehicle (sideways or backwards) and strikes his skull on the pavement. No one notices for a while (minutes?) and the necessary medical help he needs arrives too late.
posted by grum@work at 03:22 PM on December 17, 2009
Is that a haiku, grum?
posted by BornIcon at 03:28 PM on December 17, 2009
Thanks grum, now all I can think is, "Well, Chris Henry was no Wade Boggs, that's for sure."
posted by yerfatma at 03:30 PM on December 17, 2009
"We knew him in a different way than his public persona," Bengals owner Mike Brown said of the player who was suspended five times during his career. "He had worked through the troubles in his life and had finally seemingly reached the point where everything was going to blossom. And he was going to have the future we all wanted for him. It's painful to us. We feel it in our hearts, and we will miss him."
Don't know how good an actor Mike Brown is, but when I watched this news conference it seemed to me that he was clearly affected by the news.
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posted by irunfromclones at 03:38 PM on December 17, 2009
I've done things in my life at least as risky and dumb as jump in the back of a moving pickup truck. I bet most people here have as well. That doesn't make it smart, but it ought to make it understandable as the kind of dufus move that a lot of us have pulled at one time or another. RIP.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 04:16 PM on December 17, 2009
I've done things in my life at least as risky and dumb as jump in the back of a moving pickup truck.
Me too. Not by the time I was 26 though.
posted by bdaddy at 05:17 PM on December 17, 2009
As for the Bengals, this is the 2nd time this year they've had to deal with death (d-coordinator's wife). The first has acted almost like a rallying point for their defense. Wonder how this latest incident will play out from the football side of things.
posted by bdaddy at 05:19 PM on December 17, 2009
Grum's *prediction* seems pretty valid to me:
911 call: "It's got a black man on it with no shirt on, and he's got his arm in a cast and black pants on.He's beating on the back of this truck window. ... I don't know if he's trying to break in or something. It just looks crazy. It's a girl driving it."
Doesn't take david carusu looking at his loafers to figure this one out.
posted by bdaddy at 05:22 PM on December 17, 2009
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posted by Howard_T at 05:47 PM on December 17, 2009
Doesn't take david carusu looking at his loafers to figure this one out.
Really? So we know if maybe the mother of his children was driving drunk or high, and that he wasn't trying to reason with her? All that we know is that he did something reckless and now he's dead. Period. We don't know why at all. I was in the bar business for many years, and I've seen a ton of domestic disputes that could have ended up just like this one. Calling him stupid is a bullshit maneuver.
posted by tahoemoj at 06:44 PM on December 17, 2009
actually, jumping in the back of truck was the bullshit maneuver
posted by jlh0837 at 08:23 PM on December 17, 2009
NFL network reported that Henry and his fiance were ring shopping the day before. Whatever the reason it happened, there are still three kids without a dad.
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posted by cjets at 08:23 PM on December 17, 2009
actually, jumping in the back of truck was the bullshit maneuver
What, like there has to be just one?
Don't be a tool.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:52 PM on December 17, 2009
even in his last hour this dude broke the law. you are not allowed to be riding in the back of a pick up truck.
posted by jlh0837 at 05:01 AM on December 18, 2009
you are not allowed to be riding in the back of a pick up truck.
Thanks, Captain Obvious. The fact he made a mistake doesn't make his death any less a tragedy, nor does it make up for the fact that three kids now don't have a father. The world is a little less black and white then you make it out to be.
posted by dfleming at 07:32 AM on December 18, 2009
even in his last hour this dude broke the law. you are not allowed to be riding in the back of a pick up truck.
A law broken by thousands of Americans every single day. Way to keep your eye on the important stuff.
posted by rcade at 08:53 AM on December 18, 2009
So we know if maybe the mother of his children was driving drunk or high, and that he wasn't trying to reason with her?
So your suggesting there is a greater likelihood that he was doing something valiant when he jumped in the back of this truck? I suppose there is that possibility he was doing a Shawn Merriman/Tila Tequilla act of valor. I think most people would put that as very remote.
Matter of fact, a little more reading from today and we find out: a quote from one of his neighbors "'If you take off, I'm going to jump off the truck and kill myself'"
posted by bdaddy at 09:04 AM on December 18, 2009
No, there wasn't a greater likelihood he was doing something valiant. But the rush to judgment on the guy was ridiculous given how little anyone knew yesterday.
Henry did something stupid and it got him killed. Everybody does stupid things sometimes, but usually we're let off with a penalty less severe than death.
For those who haven't already made their minds up, here's the latest from the Charlotte Observer.
posted by rcade at 10:12 AM on December 18, 2009
Party foul Atheist. You're supposed to put down the mat before you jump to conclusions
posted by apoch at 10:22 AM on December 18, 2009
I have a feeling that arrows will point to the cause being - the samebad behavior being repeated yet again.
Sounds to me like Atheist nailed it.
posted by mjkredliner at 10:44 AM on December 18, 2009
I have a feeling that arrows will point to the cause being - the samebad behavior being repeated yet again.
So what? Why do some feel the need to justify his death? What benefit does this give you? A smug sense of superiority? A more secure idea of order in the universe? What? I truly find it pathetic. Truly.
Not to mention that this is the textbook example of a crime of passion.
And I think the reaction from his teammates speaks far more volumes than any fucking theory you come up with from your couch.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 11:26 AM on December 18, 2009
Why do some feel the need to justify his death?
Mr. Henry, by way of his words and actions, justified his own demise. Which is what I find pathetic. Truly.
posted by mjkredliner at 11:49 AM on December 18, 2009
Which one of his actions in life was so heinous that the proper and just outcome was his death?
posted by rcade at 11:58 AM on December 18, 2009
Mr. Henry, by way of his words and actions, justified his own demise.
Anubis, Ladies and Gentlemen. Thanks for stopping by. I don't want to hear any Christian fooferall in other threads from now on, since "Judge not lest ye be judged" has been tossed out of the window. Or pickup bed.
posted by yerfatma at 12:09 PM on December 18, 2009
"'If you take off, I'm going to jump off the truck and kill myself'"
Guess he was right.
posted by mjkredliner at 12:23 PM on December 18, 2009
I suppose domestic violence is always a crime of passion. I do feel bad for his family and friends but frankly, he was once called a one man crime wave, had a history of assault and domestic disputes. This does not mean I think he deserved to die, but I also don't think trying to paint him as a saint because of his untimely death, with statements like"he was just getting his life together" are incredibly inaccurate. This is clearly a case of a domestic dispute escalating to the point that someone died. Only this time it wasn't the woman, and frankly he wasn't getting his life together, he was resorting to same behavior that has had him in trouble his whole career.
For the record crimes of passion are still crimes and still inexcusable, just ask Nicole Simpson's family, or Rhianna.
Any theory I come up with from my couch or the police come up with after reviewing the facts is far more objective than the reaction of his teammates, which of course is just going to be a socially acceptable statement of shock and sorrow. There is nothing smugger than labeling the opinions of others you may disagree with pathetic. How ironic that your statement is the very definition of smug superiority.
posted by Atheist at 01:35 PM on December 18, 2009
mjkredliner, however earnestly you may believe that Henry's death was well-deserved and should be celebrated by right-thinking people everywhere, yours is an opinion that many in this thread find to be distasteful and a very poor reflection on you. You may feel free to believe that we're the idiots and you're the right-thinking people, but the way I see it, you've got spinach on your teeth and your fly is unzipped. Please stop making a donkey out of yourself in public. It doesn't look good.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 01:36 PM on December 18, 2009
"'If you take off, I'm going to jump off the truck and kill myself'"
She did take off - he jumped INTO the truck and I doubt it was himself he was trying to kill. She was the one trying to escape. It seems pretty clear he was doing the chasing. If the girl wants to leave I believe the proper thing to do is let her.
LBB I don't believe anybody is trying to justify his death or claim he deserved it. The point is his death was a result of his own behavior which for what ever reason he was unwilling or unable to change, despite all of his good fortune.
posted by Atheist at 01:44 PM on December 18, 2009
mjkredliner, however earnestly you may believe that Henry's death was well-deserved and should be celebrated by right-thinking people everywhere
No where, or no how, did I imply that his death was well-deserved. Nor do I think it should be celebrated. It is a tragedy, but a tragedy brought on by his own actions. If someone is talking (and acting) like he was prior to the "accident", then it seems that they pretty well brought it on themselves. Or am I the only one who sees how easily this could have been avoided?
posted by mjkredliner at 01:55 PM on December 18, 2009
No where, or no how, did I imply that his death was well-deserved.
Mr. Henry, by way of his words and actions, justified his own demise.
posted by yerfatma at 02:13 PM on December 18, 2009
Mr. Henry, by way of his words and actions, justified predicated his own demise.
Fixed.
posted by mjkredliner at 02:56 PM on December 18, 2009
Death threads are now officially my least favorite thing on Spofi.
posted by tron7 at 03:58 PM on December 18, 2009
No where, or no how, did I imply that his death was well-deserved. Nor do I think it should be celebrated. It is a tragedy, but a tragedy brought on by his own actions. If someone is talking (and acting) like he was prior to the "accident", then it seems that they pretty well brought it on themselves. Or am I the only one who sees how easily this could have been avoided?
No, you're not. My point -- and I'm not expressing this very well -- is that people do dumb things, and sometimes they die, and while it's certainly accurate to say that they brought their death on themselves (at least in terms of proximate cause), it's also tactful to keep that opinion to one's self once the horse has left the barn in this most final of all possible ways. If you had friends who liked to jump into the back of speeding pickup trucks and yee-haw up and down the road just for yuks, I would hope that you would pull their coat, express your opinion on the dumbness of what they were doing as forcefully as possible, maybe even shame them with their dumb behavior publicly -- because by doing so, you might change the behavior and thus save a life. But if one of them slipped and was fatally injured? What's gained then? Everybody who has two brain cells to rub together understands now, even if they didn't before, the connection between cause and effect; going on about it serves no purpose and only causes pain.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 03:58 PM on December 18, 2009
Death threads are now officially my least favorite thing on Spofi.
For me, that's the case almost everywhere.
posted by justgary at 04:17 PM on December 18, 2009
"Everybody who has two brain cells to rub together understands now, even if they didn't before, the connection between cause and effect; going on about it serves no purpose and only causes pain."
This forum serves no purpose other than to provide a outlet for people to have discussion and express their viewpoint. Saying a guy acted foolish and contributed solely to his own premature demise on this public forum is not the same as expressing that opinion in front of the dead persons loved ones or at a funeral. Most with two brain cells to rub together get that. This actually is an appropriate place to express personal opinions regarding sports related events.
Henry paid the ultimate price for his behavior, and those who cared about him also paid a heavy price. Now just like many other times in his life, others like his teammates, children, loved ones and friends will pay part of the price for his outrageous actions. That is extremely selfish. While we should all have sympathy for what has happened, it doesn't mean we shouldn't call it as we see it, and acknowledge this guy was an accident waiting to happen, who demonstrated little regard for anybody (including his loved ones) other than himself. His torment is over but my guess is it is just beginning for those who depended on, or cared about him.
posted by Atheist at 05:14 PM on December 18, 2009
This forum serves no purpose other than to provide a outlet for people to have discussion and express their viewpoint.
True. But if the discussion of a death is going to be a respectful one, people should put some thought into how they criticize the deceased instead of rushing to judgment.
posted by rcade at 05:29 PM on December 18, 2009
I feel that in threads like this people are quick to criticize the minority opinion regardless of the level of respect displayed.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 05:56 PM on December 18, 2009
Which one of his actions in life was so heinous that the proper and just outcome was his death?
None of them, although being arrested for pulling a 9mm on a bunch of partiers and drunken driving could have easily ended up in that category.
mjkredliner, however earnestly you may believe that Henry's death was well-deserved and should be celebrated by right-thinking people everywhere, yours is an opinion that many in this thread find to be distasteful and a very poor reflection on you. You may feel free to believe that we're the idiots and you're the right-thinking people, but the way I see it, you've got spinach on your teeth and your fly is unzipped. Please stop making a donkey out of yourself in public.
While I may not agree with mjk pointing it out now, I'm certainly not willing to leap to the completely unwarranted conclusion he is advocating the celebration of Henry's death or calling it well-deserved. He is, however, pointing out that someone who:
a) has a track record of doing self-destructive and stupid things, and then b) falls out of the back of a moving truck and dies
might be judged as slightly more likely to have been doing something, well, self-destructive or stupid at the time of his death. You might find it distasteful to say so in advance of the facts, but I don't find it any more distasteful than stretching someone else's words out of any reasonable context to make them seem awful. If it's so awful, you shouldn't have to stretch it, should you?
That donkey you're seeing? You may be standing in front of a mirror.
posted by wfrazerjr at 06:24 PM on December 18, 2009
wfrazerjr:
You might find it distasteful to say so in advance of the facts, but I don't find it any more distasteful than stretching someone else's words out of any reasonable context to make them seem awful. If it's so awful, you shouldn't have to stretch it, should you?
The words I was responding to were "Mr. Henry, by way of his words and actions, justified his own demise." Still think I'm "stretching" those words? How is it a "completely unwarranted conclusion" to say that "justified" is tantamount to "well-deserved"?
posted by lil_brown_bat at 10:53 PM on December 18, 2009
"justified" is tantamount to "well-deserved"?
"Justified" was a poor choice of word(s), however, when someone says "I'm going to jump off the truck and kill myself'" and it happens, one might say it was a self fullfilling prophecy, or that they didn't give a damn and were determined to do themselves in. Did Mr. Henry need help, counseling, love, understanding? It seems to me he did, however, his reckless actions and poor decision making ultimately rest on his shoulders, and not on those of us on the outside looking in. It is a very sad thing that this was carried to the conclusion that it was, mostly for the children involved, particularly during this, "The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year", and if I could change it, I certainly would. But, no one can deny that this was senseless, stupid, and just downright sad for, and by, those directly affected. That said, I once again reiterate, that this was completely, and totally, avoidable.
RIP Chris Henry
posted by mjkredliner at 12:42 AM on December 19, 2009
I got your points the first time (two times?), mjkredliner. Again I ask: who are these observations helping now?
posted by lil_brown_bat at 07:06 AM on December 19, 2009
The words I was responding to were "Mr. Henry, by way of his words and actions, justified his own demise." Still think I'm "stretching" those words? How is it a "completely unwarranted conclusion" to say that "justified" is tantamount to "well-deserved"?
Well, lessee ... the meaning of the word is "to prove or show to be just, right, or reasonable." The first two, nope, his death wasn't either of those, but "reasonable?" For a man who spent much of his adult life doing high-publicized stupid thing after stupid thing, I could see someone saying falling out of a moving truck while pounding on the back window might be "reasonable." I wouldn't agree and I wouldn't put it that way, but I could understand it being said.
I also don't find "well-deserved" to be synonymous with any of those three things, but you want to jump to that, go right ahead.
However, you want to show me where he was anywhere in the vicinity of "should be celebrated by right-thinking people everywhere," or are you backpedaling away from that steaming pile of excrement? I don't see how that can be viewed as anything but an attempt to vilify mjk.
You're eloquent and intelligent. You didn't need to do that.
posted by wfrazerjr at 01:01 PM on December 19, 2009
...there are still three kids without a dad.
And that is the real tragedy here. R.I.P Chris Henry.
posted by steelergirl at 02:32 PM on December 19, 2009
Fair 'nuff, fraze. To whatever extent I shot from the hip, I was far from the first or the only one doing so in this thread, but evidently I'm the only one you feel comfortable taking to task for it. Nevertheless, I'll own what's mine.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 03:39 PM on December 19, 2009
there are still three kids without a dad. they are better off.
posted by jlh0837 at 04:27 PM on December 19, 2009
Not to the trolling asshat, but to some of the more reasoned posters here, I just wanted to explain why myself and many Bengal fans are so saddened by this event. I know many of you heard this news and reacted with "well, saw that one coming," and to a certain extent, I guess I did, too. The reason that Bengaldom is so saddened by this is that everyone wanted so badly for this young man to overcome his problems. Most of us groaned when we heard that Mike Brown had brought him back into the fold, and thought he was making a mistake.
But then the reports from the sportswriters, coaches and the players themselves started disseminating about how hard he was working, how he had rededicated himself as not just a professional athlete but as a human being and a father. What saddens me the most is seeing the press conference he held last June, beaming with pride at the fact that he had faced his demons head on and seemingly triumphed. The smile on that young man's face as he acknowledged his past and thanked the organization for giving him one more chance made us all feel like the team had done the right thing. We felt like we'd watched him grow up before out eyes, and looked forward to seeing that incredible talent on the field sixteen games per year for the foreseeable future. And then this. So yeah, it seemed like quite a few posters took a certain amount of joy in being right about his end. The "I told you so" got to me, as well as others; and maybe because we already knew that the story would be unpleasant, we just hoped that it wouldn't be.
posted by tahoemoj at 07:00 PM on December 19, 2009
Thanks for that, Tahoemoj.
posted by rcade at 07:33 PM on December 19, 2009
there are still three kids without a dad. they are better off.
No, they're really not.
posted by BornIcon at 10:03 AM on December 21, 2009
Hang in there, Chris!