The 17-year-old male charged for the homicide of Corban Henry was transferred from juvenile to adult court Wednesday morning, though his name still can not be officially released yet. Corban’s mother and a dozen or so other family members and friends braved the rain as they waited outside the judicial center holding signs asking for justice, expressing relief after the ruling.
County Attorney Claud Porter confirmed the suspect was transferred to adult court. According to Daviess County Commonwealth’s Attorney Bruce Kuegel, the next step is for the case to be presented to the Grand Jury. If they return an indictment, the suspect’s name will be made public after he appears before a judge in Circuit Court.
The suspect was charged on May 4 for the shooting death of Henry, which occurred Aug. 15, 2020. Charges include murder, attempted murder, first-degree wanton endangerment (four counts), receiving stolen property (firearm), and tampering with physical evidence.
“I just felt relieved,” Nancy said of her initial feelings about the suspect being transferred to adult court. “We had confidence in the judges to make the right decision today and they did. I’m happy our judges are good people and they made the decision to keep our streets safe in Owensboro.”
On Aug. 15, 2020, Owensboro Police Department officers responded to the 1500 block of W. 5th Street at approximately 10:24 p.m. for a firearm discharge. Upon arrival, officers found a deceased male juvenile — later identified as 15-year-old Corban Henry — with a single gunshot wound.
At the time of the arrest on May 4, 2021, OPD announced that the charges “were obtained after forensic analysis was completed by the Kentucky State Police Crime Lab and after consultation with both the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office and the Daviess County Attorney’s Office. This is the culmination of an almost 8-month investigation in which numerous tips were provided by the community.”
Nancy said she’s thankful and blessed for all the support for their #JusticeForCorban movement which has included multiple peaceful events to demand justice.
“The community has really stood behind it,” she said. “Everyone has been very receptive of our message. They understand why we’re here and what we want, and they want our town to be safe as well.”
In March 2021, Nancy started the Facebook Group “Corban’s World Changers” to bring people together who want to do good things in the community in honor of Corban. The online group had grown to nearly 700 members. Nancy said the group still wants to put up a memorial to honor all the gun violence victims in Owensboro, not just Corban.
Most importantly, though, she said they people need to come together to stop gun violence and demand justice for victims.
“We’ve got to come together as a community and see that this doesn’t happen again,” Henry said. “If an innocent child can’t come down the street and come home — a 15-year-old at 10 o’clock at night — then we have a problem. It’s not OK. It’s time to make a change.”
