The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund

OFFICER OF THE MONTH - FEBRUARY 1999

DETECTIVE RICHARD "BUCK" HENRY
LOS ANGELES (CA)

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF) has announced the selection of Detective Richard "Buck" Henry as its Officer of the Month for February 1999.

"For the past 27 years, Detective Henry has dedicated his life to fighting crime on the streets of Los Angeles, California," said NLEOMF chairman Craig W. Floyd. "During that time he has earned a reputation as one of the top homicide investigators in the country. He is the kind of law enforcement professional that any community would be proud to have."

For the past 13 years he has tackled the toughest homicide cases in Los Angeles, including eight cop killings and 15 other cases involving the attempted murder of a police officer. A street-smart cop who specializes in solving the unsolvable, he is assigned to the Robbery-Homicide Division.

As a young Marine, fresh from the jungles of Vietnam and inspired by family friends who were Los Angeles police officers, Detective Henry followed in their footsteps at the age of 21. For nine years, he served in various patrol divisions within the city. His success on the streets led to a five-year assignment with the Major Crime Violators Division, where he specialized in surveillance and apprehension of violent and heavily armed suspects involved in residential and business robberies, rapes and murders.

In 1986, Detective Henry was assigned to Homicide Investigations and became one of the Division's elite investigators. "I've worked with a lot of detectives on a lot of high profile cases," says his current partner and 17-year friend, Detective Michael Berchem. "Buck is probably the most determined officer I know. He's the last cop you want after you if you've done something wrong. He just never stops until the case is solved."

It was Detective Henry's tenacious investigation of the murder of Secret Service Special Agent Julie Cross that resulted not only in the conviction of her murderers but also culminated in convictions in a separate triple-murder case. Special Agent Cross was killed in the line of duty in 1980. The case would remain unsolved for the next six years. Then, in 1986, Detective Henry went to work on the investigation and spent the next 10 years, mostly on his own time, solving the murder. The high profile case was difficult and extremely complex. Ironically, when convictions were handed down in 1996, it turned out that Detective Henry had gone to school with one of the cop killers.

At the conclusion of this case, several large Hollywood movie production companies offered Detective Henry hundreds of thousands of dollars for the story rights. Detective Henry declined the offers, saying, "We shouldn't be making money off other people's pain and anguish."

With a phenomenal 99.9% conviction rate-he has lost one case out of thousands-Detective Henry has handled other high profile cases, including the Ennis Cosby murder and the 1994 murders of two Japanese students.

Captain Jim Tatreau, the Homicide Division's Commanding Officer, described Detective Henry as "one of the very best homicide investigators in a division of the department's best investigators. He is one of the best homicide investigators in the country."

The recipient of more than 70 formal commendations and awards, Detective Henry has received the United States Secret Service Director's Honor Award and was selected California Homicide Investigator of the Year.