Witness the intense siege at Howard Johnson's Hotel, where Mark Essex held an entire city hostage. This segment is a thrilling account of his final stand. #HowardJohnsonsSiege #FinalStand #MarkEssex The Howard Johnson's Hotel, 17 stories of steel and glass. It wasn't just a building; it was a stage. The moment guests realized something was wrong inside, bullets found their marks, a doctor and his wife dead, hotel managers dead. Fires consume the hallways, and smoke chokes the stairwells. And as police surrounded the hotel, Essex turned his weapon to the streets below. Officers crumpling under his fire.