Charles "Hawkeye" Whitney (born June 22, 1957) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player. After starring at

North Carolina State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

, he was drafted by the

Kansas City Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Pacific Division ( ...

in the first round of the

1980 NBA draft The 1980 NBA draft was the 34th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 10, 1980, at the Sheraton Centre Hotel & Towers, before the 1980–81 season. In this draft, 23 NBA teams took turns selectin ...

. A knee injury limited Whitney's professional career to just 70 games, and by 1989 he was

homeless Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are: * living on the streets, also kn ...

and addicted to

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

Kidnapping and arrest

On January 26, 1996, Whitney and a juvenile

kidnap In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...

ped Mark D. Fabiani, the personal attorney of then-

First Lady First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarchical A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state fo ...

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

. He was arrested, tried, convicted of a

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...

, and sentenced to 69 months in prison. Upon his release in 2000 he found work at the

Niles Home for Children Niles may refer to: Places Places in the United States * Niles, Fremont, California, a community that is now part of Fremont * Niles, Illinois, a village * Niles, Kansas, an unincorporated community * Niles, Michigan, a city * Niles, North Dakot ...

. Whitney asserted that he participated in the crime after being accused of stealing narcotics from another individual and as a way of protecting his sister whose life was threatened.

References

1957 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Washington, D.C. DeMatha Catholic High School alumni Kansas City Kings draft picks Kansas City Kings players NC State Wolfpack men's basketball players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Shooting guards Small forwards {{1950s-US-basketball-bio-stub