The insect in your photo is the immature stage or nymph of a type of assassin bug, in the genus Pselliopsis, Family Reduviidae. I can't identify the immature stage to species from your photo, but the two most common species in the eastern U.S. are Pselliopsis barberi and Pselliopsis cinctus, so it is likely one of those two species. The immatures of this genus are easily recognizable by the spines on the abdomen and the zebra-striped legs. Assassin bugs are predators on other insects. They are members of the true bug Order Hemiptera and as such have beak-like, sucking mouthparts. Their front legs are raptorial, or modified for grasping prey like a preying mantis, but not nearly as strong. Once they grab a prey item they quickly stab it with their beak and inject a toxic paralyzing saliva, that subdues the prey and stops it from struggling. The saliva also begins to digest and liquefy the prey's internal organs. Then the assassin bug sucks out the liquid soup as its meal. While not toxic to humans, the bite of any assassin bug can be extremely painful if they are carelessly handled. I have included some links below to webpages with more information and photos about these insects.

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reduviidae

http://www.americaninsects.net/ht/pselliopus-barberi.html

http://www.americaninsects.net/ht/pselliopus-barberi-vs-cinctus.html