Receiver Chris Henry has made roughly $2.5 million in the NFL since being drafted in 2005.  According to his lawyer, it’s now all gone.

“He’s broke,” Henry’s lawyer said in court on Tuesday, according to the Dayton Daily News.  “He doesn’t have any money to pay for a transcript [of his recent trial].”

And so Henry wants to get a copy of the transcript of the testimony of his trial for free, so that his lawyer can review the transcript and use it to prepare for the re-trial, which is scheduled to begin on July 14.

“He has no funds whatsoever and can’t even meet his current obligations,” the lawyer also said.  In recent weeks, Henry lost his home and his Range Rover was repossessed.

Of course, Henry’s status means that the lawyer won’t be paid, either.  Unless the lawyer gets Henry acquitted and Henry signs with an NFL team and makes the roster and earns more six-figure salaries that he’ll eventually squander.

So why, then, can’t Henry commit to attempt to reimburse the court for the transcript within the next year, based on any employment that he might muster — whether it’s playing football, flipping burgers, or breaking rocks?

That’s the easy answer.  Give him a transcript at taxpayer expense, but require him to pay for it later.