U.S. Sen. Scott Brown Calls for Investigation After Pace University Football Star Shot by Police

Oct. 22, 2010— -- The family of a New York college football player who was shot by police then left to die without medical attention has an attorney and a U.S. senator helping to find out what precipitated the young man's death.

"While we know there are lots of versions, lots of stories that have come out, we're just trying to get to the absolute truth here," Danroy Henry Sr. told "Good Morning America" today.

"We owe it to our son," he said. "We owe it to his legacy."

Danroy Henry Jr., a 20-year-old student at Pace University, was killed last weekend as he sat in his car with his friends after a night out in suburban Mount Pleasant celebrating a homecoming game.

But there are differing accounts of what happened and a cell phone video showing the chaos failed to capture what triggered the shooting.

Police say they were responding to an unruly crowd outside a bar, and when officers approached Henry's car, parked in a fire lane, and knocked on the window, the college student tried to speed away and struck an officer.

Police say an officer was thrown onto the hood of Henry's car and then opened fire.

But Henry's teammates who were in the car with him said they thought police were simply asking them to move out of the fire land when the office rapped on the window and then as soon as Henry began to move the car, police began shooting.

Henry was then taken out of the car and cuffed. He was left on the ground while paramedics treated officers for minor, non-life threatening injuries, according to some accounts.

A lawyer for three of Henry's teammates said they were all handcuffed and arrested after begging for help and trying to give Henry CPR. One was allegedly hit with a Taser as he tried to help his dying friend.

U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., whose district includes the Henrys' hometown of North Easton, Mass., has called for a thorough investigation.

"Regardless of who was at fault, there is a loss of life," he told Boston's WEEI "Dennis and Callahan Show" in a radio interview. "You know, a young life, a bright life is lost."

Mount Pleasant police said no one has filed a police brutality complaint.

The Henrys have retained New York lawyer Michael Sussman to help them sort through the chaos surrounding their son's death. Sussman said he would be going before a Westchester County judge today to request access to all evidence in the case.

"I made it very clear we want to be involved deeply," he told "Good Morning America."

"I appeal to anyone who has any information, any cell phones, any recordings that they get to our office."

Pace University Student Danroy Henry Jr. to Be Buried on 21st Birthday

Danroy Henry Sr. and his wife, Angella Henry, said they were at what would be their son's final game last weekend and took him out to eat afterward. They knew he would be going out with his friends later that night.

"We were just enjoying our time together," the father said. "We were talking about the game, we were talking about things that were happening with our family."

Wearing her son's jersey as a tribute, Angella Henry said, "We told him to have fun and be safe."

No one in the family has heard any more information that what has been reported in the news. Henry said he learned of his son's death when an officer from his local police department in Massachusetts called to tell them they should call a hospital in New York.

"We need to somehow come to terms with this," he said, "and we can't do this without knowing, 100 percent, what happened to our son."

Pace University, with campuses in New York City and Westchester, has canceled Saturday's football game. Henry will be laid to rest Oct. 29, his 21st birthday.

Henry did not have a criminal record. His mother described him as "full of empathy and love," with a tattoo on his wrist that read "family first."

Those who knew Henry back in Easton also said the police account of what happened that night outside the bar isn't in line with what they knew of him.

"I think a lot of people are shocked and confused about what took place," Oliver Ames High School Principal Wes Paul said, "because it doesn't align with the person we know from his time here."