A Phoenix judge is set to decide Tuesday whether to accept or reject a proposed 10-year prison sentence for the man who pleaded guilty to killing Hannah Henry, a 26-year-old former ASU triathlete and two-time NCAA national champion, while she trained on her bike. Henry’s family says that number is nowhere close to enough.
Eric Hodge pleaded guilty to manslaughter and leaving the scene of a fatal accident, and under his plea agreement, prosecutors are recommending 10 years in prison, according to AZFamily. Henry’s mother, Della Doore, said the proposed sentence is a drop in the bucket for what the family has lost. “Ten years is too little compared with what we’ve lost,” Doore said, according to the outlet’s report.
A Training Ride Cut Short
Henry was riding in the bike lane on Central Avenue while training for an upcoming race when she was struck. AZFamily reports the crash happened around 11:30 a.m. on Feb. 8, while KTAR places the time closer to 11:15 a.m. near Central Avenue and Elwood Street. Police say Hodge fell asleep at the wheel and veered into the bike lane, striking Henry before driving off and leaving her at the scene, per the same AZFamily account.
Doore says she was at the grocery store when she got the call about her daughter. Henry’s father, Sean Henry, said he had thought the family had made it through the worst of the ordeal, only for the proposed sentence to reopen the wound, the station’s report notes.
Fentanyl, an Indictment, and a Guilty Plea
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office announced in February that Hodge was indicted on charges including reckless manslaughter, leaving the scene of a deadly accident, and drug-related offenses. Hodge allegedly told investigators he was high on fentanyl during the crash, the outlet’s earlier report states. Sean Henry drew a sharp contrast between his daughter’s ambitions and what he described as Hodge’s focus on obtaining another dose of the drug.
Henry’s parents said their daughter never used drugs. Doore described her as a middle child who was humble, quiet, funny and silly, someone who loved everybody and made people feel special. “She made everybody feel that they mattered in the moment,” Doore said, per the report. Doore added that Henry was 26, had recently bought a condo, and had goals and dreams her family will now never see realized, including marriage and children.
Family Plans to Speak Directly to Hodge
Henry’s family plans to attend Tuesday’s sentencing and make a statement directly to Hodge. Sean Henry said his daughter had a purpose in life and intended to make a difference, a point he has returned to as the family prepares to face her killer in court.
White Line Foundation executive director Jacqueline Claudia, reacting to Henry’s death earlier this year, said such tragedies are not isolated incidents. “It’s incredibly tragic what happened to her, and the world needs to know, these aren’t isolated cases,” Claudia said, according to AZFamily’s February coverage. The foundation has pushed for a congressional act requiring automatic emergency braking on vehicles to protect cyclists. Foundation co-founder Michael White drew a comparison to the death of his own son, Magnus, a U.S. national cycling champion, saying the driver who killed him had also fallen asleep after staying up all night and was looking for drugs that morning.
