By Ms Jheri Worldwide
Staff Writer
Henderson Atwater, a 48-year-old resident of Holly Springs, remains incarcerated following his 2020 conviction on multiple weapon charges for firing a pellet gun at several buildings. Sentenced to 49-75 years in prison, Atwater’s case has drawn the support of the NAACP Raleigh-Apex branch.
Convicted of seven felonies, including discharging a weapon into occupied vehicles and assault, and several misdemeanors, he was found guilty after a retrial. Despite a mistrial in 2022, and being acquitted on four felony counts, including one involving a facial injury, the judge’s sentence basically amounts to a life term.
In December, the NAACP Raleigh-Apex branch held a press conference to advocate for Atwater’s release, asserting his innocence and elaborating on the circumstantial evidence surrounding the case. The NAACP has also called upon the Public Integrity Section of the Department of Justice to investigate the Holly Springs Police Department and the Wake County district attorney’s handling of the case. The NAACP maintains that during Atwater’s August trial, the district attorney’s office presented inadequate evidence, and that trial testimony did not place Atwater at the scene of the incidents.
