CINCINNATI — Hamilton County Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey said her 900 staff and officers are in mourning after the death of former deputy Larry Henderson last Friday.
Rodney Hinton Jr. is accused of intentionally crashing his car into Henderson, who was working a traffic detail during the University of Cincinnati's graduation. The Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office announced Thursday Hinton has been indicted on two counts of aggravated murder, one count of murder and two counts of felonious assault.
"We're more than sad, we're heartbroken, we're absolutely devastated," McGuffey told News Radio 700 WLW's Bill Cunningham on Wednesday. (WCPO 9 is a media partner.) "It just is very surreal for all of us."
McGuffey told Cunningham that while a lieutenant, she was one of Henderson's trainers when he joined the office as a recruit in 1991. Henderson's career progressed from corrections to patrol officer, eventually joining the bomb squad, FBI task force and dive team.
The sheriff said his talent for being on the front lines was evident from his first days with the department.
"Larry didn't want to be promoted. That wasn't his goal. He wanted to be on that first line because he had skills to do that ... those endeavors," McGuffey said.
Henderson retired in December but returned to work on special events, such as graduation traffic last Friday.
"Larry had a calling to this uniform," McGuffey said. "He was called to this uniform. That's the only reason why you continue to stay in this profession after you've retired."
Law enforcement officers from across the nation are preparing to honor Henderson, with 25-50 members from Franklin County planning to ride in a motorcade to Friday's funeral.
WATCH: Law enforcement outside of the Tri-State talk about why it’s important for them to attend Friday’s funeral
"Most of the officers going down did not know him, but that doesn't matter. I am Larry. Those officers are Larry," said Brian A. Steel, President of the Fraternal Order of Police, Capital City Lodge #9.
Steel said the motorcade is a show of solidarity among law enforcement.
"It reminds every single one of us of the dangers that we face every day," Steel said. "Even things that seem like routine, there's nothing more routine than directing traffic at a college commencement, right?"
The gathering serves as a somber reminder that in solidarity, there is strength.
"The calls from service all over Central Ohio, all over Cincinnati, all over America, they continue, but we're going to send as many (officers) as we can to go down there and to celebrate his life and to mourn with his family," Steel said.
This story was reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
