Hostage Suspect: Violent 'Drunk,' or Crying for Help?

SOMERSWORTH, N.H., Dec. 1, 2007 — -- As the town of Rochester, N.H., comes to grips with the dramatic standoff that resolved peacefully less than 24 hours ago, the exact reasons behind one man's apparent decision to take five workers hostage at the local campaign headquarters of Sen. Hillary Clinton on Friday remain a mystery.

The light-blue trailer at 7 Brook Drive in Somersworth in which 46-year-old Leeland Eisenberg resides offers few clues about the suspect -- beyond a sign on the door, reportedly posted by his family, that reads, "Please respect our privacy. We will not be available for comment at this time."

But others in Rochester and Somersworth are willing to offer comment -- though their descriptions of Eisenberg paint contradictory portraits of a man whose emotional instability allegedly led him to duct tape a mock bomb made of road flares to his torso and take control of the headquarters.

Next-door neighbor Kitty Carlsen described Eisenberg as a violent alcohol drinker with a criminal past -- a man whose threats and abuse drove his wife into Carlsen's mobile home in search of sanctuary.

"I talked to his wife -- she was as good as gold," Carlsen said. "Usually, when they were fighting, when he'd caused her problems or harm, she'd come over here for a break."

These "breaks," Carlsen said, happened every couple of days or so.

"I never saw him sober," she said. "She told me he was throwing things at her, breaking glass all over. ... She was terrified of him."

Carlsen said that Eisenberg, his wife and his stepson had only moved into the adjacent trailer several months ago, so she did not know the family well. But she said his wife also told her that Eisenberg had previously served prison time for a rape charge. Reports by the Boston Herald appear to corroborate this. The Herald states that a man who went by the name Leeland Eisenberg -- jailed under the name of Ralph Woordward, according to Department of Corrections records -- had allegedly served time in the past related to a rape charge.

So when Carlsen found out that Eisenberg was behind the standoff, she said it was no surprise to her.