In 1992, John Railey was the special projects reporter for The High Point Enterprise and wrote for true-crime magazines in his off hours. Among the cases he covered was that of Clifton Eugene Spencer, who was convicted of fatally stabbing 28-year-old Stacey Stanton of Manteo in February 1990.
Railey had spent much of his life in Dare County and thought he could trust the local law enforcement. Much of his article was based on interviews with investigators as well as local newspaper clippings.
But as Railey later came to learn, the facts at hand then didn’t necessarily tell the truth. In an excerpt from his new book, Murder in Manteo, he writes about a decades-long effort to unwind the prosecution’s faulty narrative.
Confessions of a Journalist
Three decades ago, I wrote a factually correct article that failed to convey the greater truth about who committed a sensational murder. I wasn’t the only person who conformed to the prosecution’s faulty narrative.
Wanted: Exciting White Man
Gov. Roy Cooper has reportedly been on the shortlist to serve as Kamala Harris’ running mate—though maybe not the short-short list, if you believe some reports.
But you know what, who knows? Maybe Cooper still has a chance.
“People are excited about a governor who’s walloped Donald Trump twice on the ballot,” said N.C. Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton. “I believe having Gov. Cooper on the ballot would help carry a state that Republicans need to win the White House.”
Even some conservatives agree. Dallas Woodhouse, the former executive director of the North Carolina Republican Party who rarely spares a kind word for Democrats, wrote that that Harris “could do worse than Roy Cooper.”
Reporter Jeffrey Billman weighs the pros and cons of picking our two-term governor.
Have a news tip for our team? You can reach us at scoops@theassemblync.com.
What We’re Reading
Limelight: WRAL writes about how freshman state Rep. Jarrod Lowery ended up on stage at the Republican National Convention, illustrating a years-long Republican effort to court Lumbee supporters.
Fund While It Lasts: A nonprofit led by the wife of Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson has been ordered to repay $132,000 in federal funding. WUNC has the details.
Unwinding the Unwinding: N.C. Health News looks at how the state’s unique strategy kept more people enrolled in Medicaid during a complicated transition.
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With Generation Z drinking less than their older counterparts and more people exploring a less alcohol-centered nightlife, North Carolina’s brewery scene is trying something new.
An Independent Candidate’s Tough Battle
Army vet Shelane Etchison, who broke gender barriers in Afghanistan and Syria, is polished and confident. But running against the two-party system has its own challenges.
Yeti or Not, Here They Come
Western North Carolina is drawing Bigfoot hunters–from those who take cryptozoology seriously to those who are just in it for a good time. What is it about the area that attracts the Sasquatch-curious?
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