July 26, 2023
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. – Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah announced today that the independent reviews of the police-involved shooting deaths of Danroy “DJ” Henry, Jr. and Kenneth Chamberlain, Sr. identified no new evidence to convene new grand juries. In addition to the conclusion by special prosecutors, the District Attorney is releasing, within the limits of grand jury secrecy laws, her findings and recommendations, which can be found at https://www.westchesterda.net/investigative-reports
DA Rocah said: “The independent reviews have concluded that there is no legal basis to resubmit charges to a new grand jury. The review of the circumstances and aftermath of the shooting deaths of DJ Henry and Kenneth Chamberlain, Sr. by me and members of my executive team did, however, identify areas where real analysis and reform are desperately needed. We are sharing our findings and recommendations in the hopes that we can improve the process in police-involved shooting cases to be more transparent, fair and compassionate to grieving families. When those of us in the criminal justice system acknowledge where we can do better, the increased transparency leads to more faith and trust in the system. More critically, it allows for prosecutors and law enforcement alike to take steps to ensure that tragedies like these are not repeated.”
Announced in 2021, DA Rocah appointed John Gleeson, a retired U.S. District Court judge, and Douglas Zolkind, a former federal prosecutor, both partners at the law firm Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, to conduct an independent review. Along with several associates serving pro-bono as Special Assistant District Attorneys, the Debevoise team evaluated whether legal grounds existed to resubmit charges to new grand juries related to the deaths of Henry, a 20-year-old Pace University sophomore shot by a Pleasantville police officer in Oct. 2010 outside a Mount Pleasant bar, and Chamberlain, a 68-year-old former Marine who was shot by White Plains police in his home in Nov. 2011.
The District Attorney and members of her executive team—including Chief Assistant District Attorney Amy Finzi, Counsel to the District Attorney Tarek Rahman and Deputy Chief Criminal Investigator Wade Hardy—separately reviewed publicly available information, including materials related to civil proceedings for each case, and identified areas of needed reform and change. The District Attorney’s recommendations include improvements for best practices for the Westchester DA’s Office in police-involved shootings where it maintains jurisdiction, and legislative proposals for enhanced law enforcement training, communication and mental health crisis intervention.
“I want to thank John Gleeson, Douglas Zolkind and the team at Debevoise for the time and dedication they committed to completing their careful and sensitive reviews, which answered an important question,” DA Rocah added. “Most importantly, I thank the Henry and Chamberlain families for their incredible patience, and for entrusting me to answer their requests for the impartial and independent reviews that these matters deserved.”
Anna Young, Public Information Officer
(914) 995-6551
ayoung@westchesterda.net
