How Did Chris Henry Fall Out of Truck?

On December 16, 2009, Henry sustained injuries when he fell out of the back of a moving truck driven by his fiancée Loleini Tonga, while they were engaged in a domestic dispute.

On December 17, 2009, Charlotte police announced that Henry had died at 6:36 a.m. ET at Carolinas Medical Center from the injuries sustained in the domestic dispute.

Two days later, on December 19, police confirmed that Henry died of blunt-force trauma to the head. No charges were filed against his fiancée, and police announced that they found no evidence that Tonga drove recklessly or with excessive speed.

Henry was born to Carolyn Lee and David Henry in Belle Chasse, Louisiana. He attended Belle Chasse High School where he was named New Orleans small schools offensive player of the year during his senior year.

He enrolled at West Virginia University in 2002, spending his first season as a redshirt. In 2003, he earned Big East Conference freshman of the year and All-Big East second-team honors for catching 41 passes and gaining 1,006 yards, and scoring 10 touchdowns.

Henry was the third player in Mountaineers’ history to average more than twenty yards per catch for his career. His 1,878 career receiving yards is the eighth most in school history, while his 93 receptions are the 14th most.

On April 7, 2008, ESPN radio analyst and former player Michael Irvin said he took a phone call from Henry, discussing “cleaning up his act”, much like Irvin encouraged Adam “Pacman” Jones to do.

Henry and Jones were teammates at West Virginia, and both served NFL suspensions imposed by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell during the 2007 NFL season.