Activist, hostage-taker dies in prison

Okay, he was found not guilty of the hostage taking by a feds and the state brought back the charges which is Double Jeopardy. In regard to the McMillian murder he shot one boy in the ankle...but he didn't kill anybody. that was a sent up which even involved his cousin who wrote him in prison in 1999 and asked for his FORGIVENESS for what she had done to him.
No, if they hadn't gotten Hatcher for murder. They would have gotten him for something else.
His family is so sorry when he died, they were just going to let the state creamate him and throw his ashes in the ocean. Well, his supporters and friends in Robeson County raised the money to not only have him creamated but also have a memorial service.
You can say what you want about Hatcher. In the end...we are all judged by God and not man.
Now, he is free and was Saved By God's Grace!

Thanks for your respect - I am not afraid to admit my mistakes, especially such a careless one as this one.

I am human and I am capable of making them, thus I try to be held accountable for my actions.

I truly hope I did not offend outrage or you or anyone else, because it is truly a touchy subject and I am NOT nor hope to be cast as a bigot.

Honestly, the reason I do not consider myself a Republican is based on the party's stance on countless social issues. My personal preference order of issues is strictly confined to economic issues and national security.

Anyways, back to the topic...

Getting high does not lessen the harsh nature of this crime, but I find it somewhat bothersome that a law would honor (not sure of the right word to say this) the legacy left by Matthew Shepard with regards to hate crimes. I was a student at UNC when Thomas Stockwell was assaulted and I found that to be very disgusting and horrendous. I think the hate crime bill is most appropriate and it is a shame that it takes such incidences to force our legislators to put these laws on the books. I just do not think the character - drug usage - of Matthew should merit this law to be named for him. I understand he was horrendously murdered, but that is strictly my opinion; however, net picky it is...

Gosh - I do not think I am playing the victim card at all in my argument.

OK.

I am not a bigot and in fact you sir are guilty of a hate crime by calling me a bigot - it is a two way street.

That aside. I respect you admitting you were wrong about your facts to the original poster. Thank you for that.

If you'd like to continue discussing whether or not being high makes you less of a murder victim, let's move to the right thread.

outraged - firstly I do apologize - Matthew was the victim of a robbery and not attempting to perpetrate the robbery. I do understand the confusion between us. I do apologize for this mistake.

I do hope you see my underlying point that he was a the victim of a robbery and not a hate crime per say. I apologize to you if I offended. I see that my mistake was offensive...

Gosh - I do not think I am playing the victim card at all in my argument.

Do you think Matthew Shepard was involved with drugs and that these drugs were a part of the situation on the horrid evening?

CitizenOpinionated, I looked at the article you cite, and again there is not one hint, much less a shred of evidence cited therein that would support your assertion that Matthew Shephard was involved in committing a robbery when he was murdered.

You're right. CO is wrong. And not only does the article NOT say Sheppard was involved in a crime to rob his torturers, it says...

I do not doubt that one of the motives for the brutality of the killing, perhaps the primary one, was homophobia.

As for CO's victim card equating himself to a man hung on a fence and tortured until death with a blunt instrument... HA!

You're not the victim here CO. Sticks and stones will break your bones, but growing a pair would solve your other problems.

"Many are understandably aghast that some opportunistic and homophobic characters are disputing the idea that the brutal Matthew Shepard killing was purely a hate crime: a young man singled out and beaten to a bloody pulp by strangers solely because he was gay. A pure hate crime was certainly how I first thought of the case, but the notion that the story is a lot murkier is not crazy or bigoted. (How Rachel Maddow could have a segment on this and not raise any of the salient questions I don't know.) I don't doubt that homophobia fueled the disgusting murder. But I am unconvinced it was the sole motive. ABC's 20/20 report brought some serious facts to the table - most specifically the crystal meth binge that the killers had been on, and the original motive being possibly robbery of someone McKinney knew casually"

My point is this: Matthew was involved in Meth and was at this party on the night of his murder. There are claims that he was committing a robbery during the party thus inciting this incident to ensue. To name a bill about hate crimes about a young man that was a druggie and might have been committing another crime is not something we should be doing as a government. There a countless other examples of people that this bill SHOULD be named for that were true victims of a hate crime. Nothing I have said promotes or defends the horrid actions of the men responsible for his death, but I do not feel as his Shepard should be idolized by naming this bill for him considering his true character of a drug user and possible felon.

I personally think Thomas Stockwell - a true victim of a hate crime in Chapel Hill, would be a better testament than Shepard. I am sorry if you are incapable to seeing my point here. I am not a bigot and in fact you sir are guilty of a hate crime by calling me a bigot - it is a two way street.

CitizenOpinionated, I looked at the article you cite, and again there is not one hint, much less a shred of evidence cited therein that would support your assertion that Matthew Shephard was involved in committing a robbery when he was murdered. Given the fact that your "proof" is directly contrary to your assertion, once again I come to the conslucion that you have a homophobic motive in your posts.

Wow - I was merely replying to the post concerning how headlines can be misconstrued. Some people need to get some tougher skin.

As for those that resorted to calling me a bigot - read this article. http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/05/the-case-of-matthew-shepard.html

citizenopinionated once again you make a post that has no basis in fact or even in the righ wings view of realtity. There is not nor has there ever been any view that Matthew Shephard was anyting other tnan a victim of a violent crime that was committed even by the admission of one of the criminals because he was gay. YOU ARE A DISGUTING EXAMPLE OF A HOMOPHOBIC BIGOT!!!!!!

Yup. Major issues going on there. It puts the lotion on it's skin then it makes a post again.

citizenopinionated once again you make a post that has no basis in fact or even in the righ wings view of realtity. There is not nor has there ever been any view that Matthew Shephard was anyting other tnan a victim of a violent crime that was committed even by the admission of one of the criminals because he was gay. YOU ARE A DISGUTING EXAMPLE OF A HOMOPHOBIC BIGOT!!!!!!

So fairviewroad, being an "activist" is more important than being a murderer? This man took another's life. Perhaps you would fill differently if you knew the victim.

AIDS, a natural cause of death? AIDS is not a natural disease.

Mr. Hatcher was released early from his kidnapping sentence due to contracting the AIDS virus while in prison. Had he been kept there he may have never killed Mr. McMillian. Strange that the mercy shown Mr. Hatcher by the prison system for real guilt didn't temper his dispensing judgment for a suspected crime where Mr. McMillian was concerned. Is dying from AIDS, if he did, really a natural cause?

Well, at least it's not like the man was right about the Robeson County Sheriff's Office being involved in corruption. I mean, could you imagine if he'd been proven right about that??? What if the sitting sheriff at the time was later convicted and sentence to federal prison for his rampant corruption???

S**t, he was right, and the former sheriff does reside in Butner right now. Well, they're all terrorists! (You can choose whoever you want "they" to be! It's amazing!)

It should be lowlife, scum of the earth, life-taking, terrorist, waste of taxpayer's money is finally dead, hoo-rah, HOO_RAH!!!

Ok I am taking a break from cocktails at the beach. But I am confused, the post mentions murder and kidnapping. This post elaborates on the kidnapping but not the murder conviction, why?

Let's try this headline on for size

"Kid Killed As He Attempts Robbery"

= Matthew Shepard...

Citizen Opinionated, you're disgusting.

If you must continue to post your lies, do it where they belong.

The newspaper hostage thingie was in 1988 during Governor Martin's administration. The murder happened later.

How about "Terrorist expires". By the way, I suspect that it was Jim Hunt, not Jim Martin that was governor in 1999.

Well Fairview Road you history must be astounding...

Let's try this headline on for size

"Kid Killed As He Attempts Robbery"

= Matthew Shepard...

No, headlines should tell you instantly what the story will relate. "Activist" and "hostage-taker" are exactly what brought to my mind Eddie Hatcher, even if his name was not mentioned.

The headline should be "Murder, hostage-taker dies in prison" but this is the liberal N&O so what should I expect?