Bakari Henderson's parents still seeking justice as suspects in son's 2017 killing face new trial in Greece

More than four years after Bakari Henderson was beaten to death by a mob in Greece, his parents are returning to that country for a retrial of their son's murder case.

The 22-year-old American was on a business trip in July 2017 when he was attacked outside a bar in an incident that was captured on camera. Nine of the attackers went on trial in 2018. Six were found guilty of assault, and none were convicted of murder.

His parents, Jill and Phil Henderson, sat down with "CBS Mornings" co-host Gayle King to discuss their fight for justice for the young man they called the heartbeat of their family.

"It's been a lot of highs, but mostly lows, trying to process the grief," Jill Henderson said in an interview that aired Thursday. "I would say the hardest thing has been feeling like I'm not always doing the best that I can by my other two children... because I spend so much time focused on Bakari, and the retrial, and just trying to keep his legacy alive because I miss him so much."

Phil Henderson said he thinks about his son daily.

"There's something [that] happens every day that makes me think about him," he said.

Bakari Henderson was a world traveler and recent college graduate. He was visiting the Greek island of Zakynthos when a night out turned deadly. A woman told authorities the altercation began after she asked to take a selfie with Bakari. The woman said a Serbian customer nearby then told her, "There are a lot of Serbs in the bar. Why are you talking to a Black guy?"

The surveillance video shows that man hitting Bakari in the face. Bakari hesitated, struck back and then tried to escape. A mob then chased him down the street, beating him against a car, and then on the ground. Less than 30 seconds later, Bakari was dead.

His death made international headlines.

"Somebody getting beaten to death? Over a selfie? It just makes no sense," Jill Henderson said. "It's very hard to imagine that people would have that much hate to do something to another human being."

Six of nine suspects charged with intentional homicide, which carries a life sentence in Greece, were found guilty of a lesser assault charge. 

The attackers — five Serbian nationals and a British man of Serbian descent — faced between five and 15 years in prison. The other three men were acquitted. At least four of the men have already been released.

"You should not be able to chase down a man and then beat him to death and then not go to jail and serve jail time," Jill Henderson said after the 2018 trial.

The grieving parents were also present for the first trial, which was all in Greek.

"It was eye-opening because it was so different," Jill Henderson said, adding that the language barrier adds to the stress of the case.

"And even though you can't understand what's being said, both of you still feel it's very important for you to be there in person?" King asked.

"Yes," Jill Henderson said. "Just so that they realize that Bakari is loved and we are there to support the outcome of this trial. We want to see justice served."

During the first trial, the couple sat behind the men accused of taking their son's life in court.

"It was rough," Phil Henderson said. "They were there to have a good time just like he was there to have a good time. I just kept saying to myself, 'If they only would have gotten to know him, they would have loved him.'"

Jill Henderson said the men were even allowed to hug and kiss their families during breaks in the courtroom.

"And I'm like, 'Really? You're doing that in front of us? And we'll never get to do that with our son?'" she said. "It just felt like there was just no real respect for the fact that we were there, grieving."

Years after their son's death, the Hendersons haven't done much to his room in their Austin home.

"We haven't even unpacked his suitcase yet," Jill Henderson said. 

"We just haven't been able to. I don't know," she said.

Next week, the couple will return to Greece for the fifth time as seven of the original nine men accused in this brutal attack are being retried for murder.

"Are you more optimistic this time, Jill?" King asked.

"I want to be. I'm trying to be," she said. "It just was so devastating last time to have all that optimism and then have it just kind of thrown in your face at the last minute.

"I just truly hope that, this time, that they really view Bakari as a child of God and the human that he is, and view him as somebody that could be their brother, their son, their grandson, their nephew, their friend. So, I mean, I really want them to be able to understand that when they're doing the sentencing this time."

Phil Henderson said he believes race has played a role in the case.

"I don't think they view us Black people the same as they do White people over there," he said. "And I felt that in the trial, and the results of the trial, is that they treated and felt like he was less than a man."

Jill Henderson said she feels like this is her last shot at justice.

"I definitely do. And I do hope that we get justice and that the final time is a charm," she said.

"This has been such a physical and just emotional drain on us, and financially, as well," her husband said. "So we feel this is it."

"I just need to feel like we did everything that we could do," Jill Henderson said. "I feel like we owe it to Bakari."