Keep this family in your prayers....
Posted on Thu, Dec. 01, 2005
R E L A T E D C O N T E N T
Fort Worth police officer Henry "Hank" Nava stands beside his police car in this recent photo provided by the Fort Worth Police Department.
R E L A T E D L I N K S
'No way I knew that was a police officer'8:51 PM
Gunman placed on suicide watch 5:25 PM
Gunman's mom doesn't buy his story
Sign officer Nava's guest book
Fort Worth officer pronounced dead
By ALEX BRANCH
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
FORT WORTH As dozens of his colleagues stood vigil, veteran police officer Henry "Hank" Nava died late Thursday afternoon, two days after he was shot in the head while searching a home for a paroled felon, a police spokesman said.
Nava, 39, died at Harris Methodist Fort Worth hospital, where he had been since the shooting, said Lt. Dean Sullivan, a Fort Worth police spokesman.
Sullivan said Nava's wife and family were at his side.
Fort Worth Police Chief Ralph Mendoza and Mayor Mike Moncrief were among those on hand for the announcement, as was Nava's wife, Teresa.
Today, this great city we are all so privileged to live in grieves, Moncrief said. We share the pain of ... the family. We also know that every Fort Worth police officer and their families are hurting.
This city is proud of the job that officer Hank Nava did for the many years that he was with the city, and we are proud of the outstanding job that every one of our officers do every day.
The Navas have two children, a 9-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son.
Sandi Martin, a family spokeswoman, said that Nava's death should be a reminder to Americans about the value of their police officers.
As you see police cars pass you each day, please be reminded that those officers put their lives on the line daily, they put their families second, to protect the innoncent in this city and across the nation, she said.
Even as Nava had clung to life, police and city officials cautioned that his prognosis was extremely grave. The bullet, fired from a 9mm semiautomatic handgun, struck him just above the left eye as he opened the door to a bedroom, police documents say.
Dozens of Navas fellow officers kept vigil in an auditorium area of the hospital, including the other nine members of the north-side crime response team to which he was assigned.
The walls contained pictures of the veteran officer, including one in which Nava is helping deliver supplies to New Orleans police officers after Hurricane Katrina. In another, he smiles at the camera during a party at his southwest Fort Worth home.
The mayor was among those who spent much of Wednesday and Thursday at the hospital. He took some time as did many officers to say a personal goodbye to Nava.
I told him how much this city appreciates him and what he did, Moncrief said softly. I promised him we would take care of his family. And I promised him that this department would continue to be one of the best in the country.
At one point Wednesday, Navas family visited with the waiting officers.
"Hank was really liked and respected by a lot of people. This is going to hurt for a long time," Lee Jackson, president of the Fort Worth Police Officers Association, said after the visit.
Nava was shot while searching for a suspect in an identity-theft scheme in northwest Fort Worth.
Stephen Lance Heard, 39, is under suicide watch at the Tarrant County Jail. Earlier Thursday, he told reporters that he shot Nava because he mistook the officer for a robber.
There is no way I knew that was a police officer. There is no way, Heard said during a 20-minute interview at the Mansfield Jail, before he was moved to Fort Worth.
Police have said that the attempted capital murder charge against Heard would be upgraded to capital murder if Nava died. Bond is currently set at $2 million.
"Its so hard, said Mayor Pro Tem Chuck Silcox, choking up as he spoke. "There was no reason for him to shoot, yet he did, and we lost one of the finest officers we had."
Nava is the first Fort Worth police officer killed in the line of duty since 1994.
Almost six years ago, in January 2000, Fort Worth police also mourned the loss of longtime Chief Thomas Windham, who died of cancer.
Nava started his law enforcement career with the Austin Park Police Department in 1988. He joined the Fort Worth Police Department in 1992, left in 1999 for a short stint in Plano, then returned to Fort Worth.
Jackson, who has known Nava for years, said Nava went to Plano to try something new but missed the action in Fort Worth.
"He was as good of a street cop as I've ever known," Jackson said. "He missed the action you find in a bigger city.
"He was a guy who never shied away from anything."
Staff writers Anna M. Tinsley, Deanna Boyd and Traci Shurley contributed to this report.
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HOW TO HELP
A fund for Nava's family has been established at Chase Bank. Donations can be dropped off at the Fort Worth Police Officers Association, 904 Collier St., Fort Worth.
