The Robesonian takeover
On February 1, 1988, two armed Tuscarora men, Eddie Hatcher and Timothy Jacobs, took hostages in the offices of The Robesonian newspaper in Lumberton, Robeson County, North Carolina. At the time, Robeson County was experiencing a significant level of drug trafficking and there was increasing public distrust of the county sheriff's office, especially from the area's significant Native American population. Hatcher believed he had evidence of corruption in the local justice system and, fearing for his life, enlisted the aid of Jacobs to try to raise awareness about his concerns. The two held the staff of the county daily newspaper hostage for 10 hours before extracting an agreement from North Carolina Governor James G. Martin to investigate corruption allegations in Robeson.
The event provoked a major police response and significant media attention. Residents expressed mixed feelings about the efficacy of the takeover, but some expressed sympathy for Hatcher's and Jacobs' concerns about corruption. Martin appointed a task force to field their allegations, but the two ceased cooperating with the state officials after they refused to secure their immunity from prosecution. Both men were found not guilty of federal offenses before being convicted on kidnapping charges in state court. The governor's task force ultimately found no evidence of wrongdoing in the county sheriff's office at the time.
Background
Robeson County
In the 1980s Robeson County was among the poorest counties in the state of North Carolina, United States. It had a triracial population of about 101,000 people of whom 26 percent were black, 37 percent were white, and 37 percent were Native American. At the time, the county experienced a significant level of drug trafficking, becoming a distribution point for cocaine originating from Miami, Florida. The Robeson County Sheriff, Hubert Stone, worked closely with District Attorney Joe Freeman Britt to prosecute narcotics-related offenses. Public concerns of corruption among Robeson County law enforcement officials arose in August 1986, when cocaine was taken from an evidence locker in the sheriff's office. A deputy was accused of theft but was acquitted in court. Concern was levied directly at Sheriff Stone when he appeared as a character witness in a 1985 trial for a local man charged with cocaine dealing and wrote a letter asking for the release of another who had purchased large quantities of marijuana from undercover federal agents.On November 1, 1986, Kevin Stone—a sheriff's deputy and the son of the sheriff—shot and killed Jimmy Earl Cummings, an unarmed Lumbee man, during a traffic stop. The county elections took place three days later, and Hubert Stone was reelected to his office. A jury for a coroner's inquest later ruled that the shooting was "accidental and in self-defense". Robeson County's major newspaper, The Robesonian, accused the sheriff's department of "whitewashing" the incident and said that Stone had erred in promoting his son to the position of head of the department narcotics division when he was young and inexperienced. After the affair Stone struggled to garner electoral support from the Lumbee community. That year a triracial group of Robeson residents created the Concerned Citizens for Better Government. The group raised money for Cummings' family's legal fees and attempted to raise awareness about other police-related killings in the county. Sheriff Stone denounced the members of the CCBG as "radicals".
Eddie Hatcher and Timothy Jacobs
Eddie Hatcher was a member of the Tuscarora tribe and the CCBG. In January 1988 he came into possession of a map from John Hunt, a drug dealer and alleged informant working for the State Bureau of Investigation. The map, drawn by Hunt or someone else, depicted various networks and personalities related to the drug trade in Robeson County, including an implication that such trafficking included the involvement of county court officials. Believing that Hunt had told the sheriff's department that he possessed the map, Hatcher began to fear that he would be arrested. He consulted an attorney who advised him that the map was not sufficient to evidence law enforcement misconduct and would be of little use to him if he was detained by the authorities. The police chief of Pembroke suggested that he drop the matter since he was likely to provoke some "dangerous people". Some CCBG members helped Hatcher leave the area for a few days, but he returned to continue investigating. That month a black asthmatic, Billy McKellar, died in the Robeson County jail after falling ill and not receiving medical attention.Hatcher enlisted the aid of fellow Tuscarora Timothy Jacobs, who he had met through activist circles. The two decided to take the staff of a newspaper—The Robesonian—hostage to raise publicity for their concerns and protect Hatcher from anticipated retribution for his alleged insight into local drug dealing. The Robesonian was Robeson County's afternoon daily newspaper. Headquartered in downtown Lumberton near the Robeson County Courthouse, it had an average circulation of 15,000. Having existed for over 100 years and representing mainstream white opinion in the county, The Robesonian regularly editorially disagreed with The Carolina Indian Voice of Pembroke, the county's younger Indian-led weekly paper. Hatcher had previously expressed dissatisfaction with the editorial direction of The Robesonian, writing in an op-ed in the Voice that it was controlled by "political trash". Hatcher and Jacobs also felt that the paper's mirrored office windows would offer them a strategic advantage in a siege, allowing them to see outside but preventing onlookers from seeing in. Hatcher wrote his will the night before the takeover, while Jacobs told his professors at Pembroke State University that he would be missing class due to an impending "emergency".
Siege
At 9a.m. on the morning of February 1, 1988, Hatcher and Jacobs purchased two shotguns and ammunition for a.38 pistol from a hardware store in Pembroke. They sawed off the shotgun barrels, and one hour later entered the offices of The Robesonian in downtown Lumberton. Upon their entrance, a receptionist panicked and offered the two money from the cash drawer. Hatcher told her, "This isn't a robbery, ma'am." Hatcher then chained the front doors of the offices shut. A total of 17 to 19 people were taken hostage, including one man who was trying to purchase an advertisement. The paper's sports editor, Donnie Douglas, fled through a back door. One reporter, Raymond Godfrey, was able to lock himself in a darkened office without being noticed. He telephoned his wife, 9-1-1, and then directly called the Lumberton Police Department, describing to the operator the men's appearance and the weapons they possessed. He later called a State Bureau of Investigation agent in Raleigh to provide officials with information on events.About 100 law enforcement officers responded to the hostage crisis. Police cordoned off two blocks around the newspaper offices in downtown Lumberton. As the siege progressed The Robesonian office's switchboard was flooded by calls from state, national, and international news organizations. Hatcher, Jacobs, and the staff gave numerous telephone interviews on the events as they unfolded. Jacobs told one journalist that, "The Indian people are tired of the fact that so many people are getting killed, and the lawmen are just covering it up." Hatcher suggested that the police should not intervene, saying, "It's not up to me whether these people get killed or not. Their lives rest in the hands of law enforcement officials." While the siege was ongoing, the office of U.S. Representative Charlie Rose, unaware of what was transpiring, called The Robesonian to talk about a news story. The journalist who answered the phone told the congressional office that Hatcher and Jacobs wanted to speak with Rose. After consulting with Lumberton police, Rose called back and spoke with Hatcher, who asked that a federal investigation be opened into local corruption.
Hatcher and Jacobs demanded to speak directly with North Carolina Governor James G. Martin, who refused to do so for fear of setting a precedent. Instead, Martin's chief of staff, Phil Kirk, negotiated on the governor's behalf via phone from the State Highway Patrol commander's office in Raleigh. Martin remained in the office to direct the state's efforts and respond to the situation along with the patrol commander and the deputy director of the State Bureau of Investigation. Over the course of five phone calls, Kirk and the hostage takers agreed to four demands: that the death of McKellar be investigated, that potential corruption in the sheriff's department be investigated, that John Hunt be removed from the sheriff department's custody, and that Hatcher and Jacobs be allowed to surrender to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The siege lasted 10 hours. Halfway through, newspaper executive editor George Horne began taking photos of the situation. Hatcher and Jacobs released hostages as the standoff progressed until only seven were left in the building. They also negotiated with officials to give them and the hostages food and cigarettes. In preparation for their surrender, the Lumberton police chief drove around the office block three times with a bullhorn announcing that law enforcement officers were to hold their fire on the order of the governor. Horne, worried that Hatcher and Jacobs would be still shot, chose to lead them out of the building as a shield. As Hatcher and Jacobs backed towards the police, the former turned to Horne and said, "Bob, please don't do us too bad in the paper."
Aftermath
Media coverage and reactions
The siege attracted an estimated 200 journalists to Lumberton to cover the events. It was featured that evening on CBS Evening News by an on-site reporter. At least 50 journalists from other organizations interviewed Robesonian staff the following day. Having been unable to published their February 1 Monday edition, The Robesonian put out an afternoon Tuesday edition covering the events of the siege with 3,000 additional printed copies available for circulation. The hostage crisis briefly softened the rivalry between The Robesonian and the Voice, with Voice editor Connee Brayboy pledging to mend their differences and agreeing with the former paper that Hatcher and Jacobs should not "waste away in prison." This quickly ended when Brayboy began actively campaigning and raising money for the two, leading Horne to condemn her actions as unprofessional for a journalist.Within Robeson County, views on the siege were divided; some believed it was a necessary act to bring attention to the corruption allegations, while others thought it was dangerous and unproductive. When asked if he was surprised by the hostage-taking, Tuscarora tribe chairman Cecil Hunt said, "No. The people in this county have got to have some relief from the oppression that's been occurring over the years." The CCBG denounced the hostage-taking but expressed sympathy for the corruption allegations. Alarmed by the situation, the American Indian Movement and the National Council of Churches dispatched representatives to Robeson County to study the region's drug trade. The U.S. Department of Justice sent two officials to Robeson County to learn about its economic and social problems from community leaders.