She was born in a war-ravaged Vietnam, a country she left as a toddler. But Trinh Huynh was living her own American dream.
From a tiny boat drifting away from her homeland, Huynh graduated from both Princeton and Emory universities. Professionally, she distinguished herself as an attorney, but it was her passion for teaching others, humor and love of adventure that many will remember about Huynh. The 40-year-old was shot and killed Monday morning as she walked in Midtown Atlanta, about a block from her home.
A day after releasing surveillance camera images of the alleged shooter, Atlanta police said Tuesday that the suspect had been arrested. It was a traffic stop in Cobb County that led to the arrest of Raylon Browning, 39, of Roswell, Deputy Chief Darryl Tolleson said.
Browning was charged with murder, but a motive wasn’t known late Tuesday, and investigators weren’t certain if the suspect knew his victim.
“This investigation is not over,” Tolleson said. “We have the person responsible in custody, but it only really begins the investigation.”
When Browning allegedly killed Huynh, it was his third violent act in two days, according to police. On Sunday, Browning allegedly stabbed two men on West Peachtree Street, Tolleson said. The stabbing victims identified Browning as their attacker, and Monday afternoon, arrest warrants were issued for Browning charging him with two counts of aggravated assault.
Around 7:40 a.m. Monday, Browning allegedly approached Huynh from behind as she walked on Peachtree Street toward the Midtown MARTA station. Witnesses heard three shots and Huynh fell to her knees as her assailant ran from the area, according to police. Huynh died from her injuries at Grady Memorial Hospital.
Surveillance cameras captured Huynh’s assailant, and Atlanta police released videos Monday afternoon, asking for the public’s help in identifying him. Around 9 p.m., Browning ran a red light at the intersection of Powers Ferry Road and Windy Ridge Parkway and was stopped by Cobb County police. Browning’s arrest warrants alerted the Cobb officer that he was a wanted man.
In Browning’s car, police found the gun allegedly used to kill Huynh, along with the sweatshirt he was believed to be wearing in surveillance images from Midtown. Browning was wearing the shorts and shoes seen in the videos, Atlanta police said.
Late Monday, Browning was booked into the Cobb jail, where he remained until Tuesday morning, when investigators determined he was the suspect they’d been seeking in Huynh’s slaying. Browning was moved to the Fulton County jail, where he was being held late Tuesday.
The arrest was a relief to those closest to Huynh. But her death devastated friends and colleagues who remembered a smart woman, determined to succeed and help others do the same.
“Trinh was a strong and strong-willed person,” Matt Westmoreland, an Atlanta school board member, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Her life was just an incredible story.”
An avid traveler, Huynh was adventurous but still down-to-earth and loved her family, Andrea Barbian Buntin, a former Coca-Cola Co. colleague, said Tuesday afternoon. Huynh was small in stature, but seemed much taller because of her big personality and quick wit, Buntin said.
“She was just a very fun, warm … that’s why this was shocking,” Buntin said. “That’s why there has to be more to this story. She didn’t have enemies.”
Read and sign the online guestbook for Trinh Huynh
After leaving Coca-Cola, Huynh worked as an attorney for UPS and was previously a board member for the Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association. In addition to her work as an attorney, Huynh mentored students on the Grady High School mock trial team. Westmoreland was one of those students and first met Huynh in 2004. Under her guidance, the mock trial team won state titles, Westmoreland said.
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“She had really high expectations for us as a team because she wanted us to succeed individually and collectively,” he said.
Huynh graduated from Princeton in 1998, and when Westmoreland decided to apply to that school, he asked her to write a recommendation letter. He never got to read the letter, but it didn’t matter. Westmoreland, a 2006 Grady graduate, was accepted. After college, Westmoreland kept in touch with Huynh, whom he saw in February at a Princeton alumni dinner in Atlanta.
“She’s always been the same person,” Westmoreland said. “She’s incredibly smart. Her sense of humor and sarcasm are just bar-none.”
Huynh’s energy was endless, Buntin said. Somehow, she found time to create flower arrangements, shop for bargains at Goodwill and attend symphony concerts. She had a zeal for life, and it kept her busy.
“I just can’t believe that she’s gone,” Buntin said. “It’s just horrible.”
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