Chuck Stone, 89, a legendary former Daily News columnist

CHUCK STONE, 89, a legendary former Daily News columnist and former Tuskegee Airman, died today.

Stone died in his sleep early this morning at an assisted-living home in Farmington, N.C., relatives said.

From 1972 to 1991, he was a columnist for the Daily News. He was such a trusted figure in Philadelphia that more than 75 murder suspects surrendered to Stone rather than to law-enforcement authorities.

Stone was the first president of the National Association of Black Journalists.

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