NC- Mike Adams, UNCW professor that resigned after racist tweet is found dead at home, 23 Jul 2020

[aThousandYearsWide]

FORMER UNCW PROFESSOR WHO RETIRED EARLY FOLLOWING RACIST SOCIAL MEDIA POST FOUND DEAD IN NORTH CAROLINA HOME

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- A former UNCW professor was found dead in his New Hanover County home on Thursday, according to ABC-affiliate WWAY.

Mike Adams, who taught sociology and criminology at the university, retired early after backlash from a racially charged social media post in which he called Gov. Roy Cooper "Massa Cooper."

Adams was slated to retire August 1 and would receive a $504,702 settlement for lost salary and lost retirement benefits.

In late May, Adams tweeted that he dined with six men at a six-seat table and "felt like a free man who was not living in the slave state of North Carolina." He then wrote: "Massa Cooper, let my people go!" He announced his retirement in June after a petition calling for his firing received more than 60,000 signatures.

The New Hanover Sheriff's Office told WWAY that Adams' death is being investigated at this time.

Former UNCW professor who retired early following racist social media post found dead in North Carolina home

BREAKING: New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office confirms the identity of the dead body removed from Mike Adams’ home

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

WILMINGTON — According to the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, Mike Adams was found dead at his residence today.

Deputies responded to a wellness check at Adams’ home address and found him deceased. NHCSO is investigating the death, but has not released any additional information, and could not confirm cause of death or if foul play was suspected.

The longtime professor of criminology and sociology at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) was set to retire next week as part of a $500,000 settlement.

The settlement came as Adams was facing growing criticism for his social media posts and UNCW, in particular Chancellor Jose V. Sartarelli, was under increasing pressure to terminate his employment. Several petitions with around 85,000 total signatures called for his termination, and letters from his colleagues and fellow criminologists denounced his actions and called for his firing.

Due to Adams’ tenured status, and his previous legal victory over UNCW (which cost the UNC system roughly $700,000), the university opted for a negotiated exit.

Adams had supporters as well as detractors, including those who saw his online behavior as an exercise of his first First Amendment rights. Adams’ classes were also popular with many of his students, earning him generally positive evaluations and several awards for teaching, according to his UNCW curriculum vitae.

New Hanover Sheriff’s Office investigating death of UNCW Professor Mike Adams | Port City Daily

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

(CNN)Mike Adams, the former University of North Carolina Wilmington professor who angered the campus community on Twitter, was found dead in his home Thursday afternoon, according to the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office.

Adams was found dead and alone in his home during a welfare check at about 2 p.m., Jerry Brewer, a public information officer with the sheriff's department, told CNN. The investigation into his death is ongoing, Brewer said.

Adams' death comes less than a month after the university announced that he would retire following campus uproar over his tweets.

University of North Carolina Wilmington calls professor's tweets 'vile and inexcusable' following growing backlash online
Adams, a former professor of criminology at UNCW, and author of "Feminists Say the Darndest Things: A Politically Incorrect Professor Confronts 'Womyn' on Campus," was set to retire August 1, Chancellor Jose V. Sartarelli said in a statement posted on the university's website.

"Over the past several weeks, many of you have inquired about the status of a UNCW faculty member, Dr. Mike Adams, in light of the public attention generated by comments he made on his personal social media channels," Sartarelli said. "We can now share the update that after a discussion with Chancellor Sartarelli, Dr. Adams has decided to retire from UNCW, effective August 1, 2020."

As part of his retirement, Adams received $504,702 from the university for lost salary and lost retirement benefits, Spectrum News 1 reported.

Adams became a lightning rod for controversy in Wilmington in late May.

"This evening I ate pizza and drank beer with six guys at a six seat table top. I almost felt like a free man who was not living in the slave state of North Carolina. Massa Cooper, let my people go!" he tweeted on May 29.

Roy Cooper is North Carolina's Democratic governor.

Adams' tweet was sent a week after the state moved into phase two of reopening and a few days after protests erupted over George Floyd's death in Minneapolis.

Another tweet from Adams, on May 28, read: "Don't shut down the universities. Shut down the non essential majors. Like Women's Studies."

In a statement to CNN on June 6, UNCW called Adams' messages "vile and inexcusable."

"We are listening to the outrage being expressed regarding the vile and inexcusable comments made by a UNCW faculty member," the university said in the statement. "However, we are not just listening; we can confirm we are very carefully and assertively reviewing our options in terms of how to proceed. We are not able to comment further at this time, as this is a personnel matter."

Adams' tweets became the focal point of two Change.org petitions calling for his removal.
Former University of North Carolina Wilmington professor who resigned amid controversy found dead in his home

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

"Over the years, people have started online petitions calling on the university to fire Adams. A recent Change.org petition that described him as a longtime "thorn in the side of UNC Wilmington" garnered more than 60,000 signatures."

A Professor Who Was Known For His Racist, Misogynistic Tweets Was Found Dead In His Home

This article is from 2016 and has some of his controversial tweets(they are very shocking). He sued the school in 2006 for not giving him a promotion due to his free speech advocacy.
Professor's Racist And Anti-Gay Language Sets Off Free-Speech Battle On Campus

 

[Clair Louise]

Mmmm......

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.newsobserver.com/news/local/education/article244449237.html

 

[insearchoflight]

"Over the years, people have started online petitions calling on the university to fire Adams. A recent Change.org petition that described him as a longtime "thorn in the side of UNC Wilmington" garnered more than 60,000 signatures."

A Professor Who Was Known For His Racist, Misogynistic Tweets Was Found Dead In His Home

This article is from 2016 and has some of his controversial tweets(they are very shocking). He sued the school in 2006 for not giving him a promotion due to his free speech advocacy.
Professor's Racist And Anti-Gay Language Sets Off Free-Speech Battle On Campus

Whoa wow those posts are shocking. Attaching his pic for reference from the article: Professor's Racist And Anti-Gay Language Sets Off Free-Speech Battle On Campus

So we don’t know if this was suicide, natural causes, accident or murder yet?

 

[Clair Louise]

I think that this man was very conflicted. Most normal men don't have to worry about gay men. They let them be, unless they think that they are going to be tempted when they are roaming male public toilets.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

Whoa wow those posts are shocking. Attaching his pic for reference from the article: Professor's Racist And Anti-Gay Language Sets Off Free-Speech Battle On Campus

So we don’t know if this was suicide, natural causes, accident or murder yet?

I wonder when they are going to release his cause of death. From what we do know it seems a probable suicide after all the backlash and loss fo his job; however, it seems fishy how close this happened to him receiving his retirement money. If foul play I'd think it could be related to that. IMO.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

It is really sad to see that news of his death is receiving such hateful comments on social media . One of his friends said something absolutely beautiful. Said he did not agree with the stuff Mike would say and they got into it at times, but that at the end of the day he was always a good friend.

 

[Sherlockhemlock]

This will turn out to be murder. He was one month out from retirement. JMO

 

[FlyerFan28]

I work for the state (NC). Now is not a good time to get a post retirement job. The UNC system as a whole if facing layoffs. Thankfully I work for the community college system and feel a bit secure.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

WILMINGTON
Friends frantically pounded on Mike Adams’ door calling “Mike! Mike!” on Thursday afternoon in the minutes before deputies arrived and found the UNC-Wilmington professor dead inside, his neighbors said Friday.

“Next thing I know, I had 20 something vehicles all throughout here,” said Bryan Hanley, 56.

He said then deputies put up crime scene tape and brought the body out of the house.

News of Adams’ death erupted on social media Thursday and Friday, with some people decrying his tweets about race and gender and another saluting him as a fearless conservative voice.

Around Adams’ home near Bayshore, neighbors had few clues to explain the sudden death of a 55-year-old professor who was set to retire in a week with more than $500,000 in settlement money from the university he had battled for two decades.

Hanley said Adams had told him recently that he had befriended his ex-wife, and that she would come by his house every few weeks. Another neighbor, John Gillespie, said Adams had planned on selling his home and moving to Charlotte.
“We’ve heard a lot of rumors, you know ... all these people jumping to these conclusions,” Hanley said.

New Hanover County sheriff’s deputies responded to Adams’ home after a request to check on him, Lt. J.J. Brewer said Thursday.

The death investigation continued Friday with no more details being released by deputies.



He has long drawn fire at UNCW, most recently surrounding his comments on social media, The News & Observer has reported.



Adams also tweeted about the individuals protesting the killing of George Floyd, saying that rioters were “thugs looking for an opportunity to break the law with impunity.”

A large rock on the UNCW campus was spray-painted and plastered with demands that Adams be fired, though it had been covered over before Friday.

Alumnus Sheryl Yoast tweeted last month that she would never send her children there while he continued to teach. More than 100,000 people signed Change.org petitions against Adams.

But Adams’ controversies go much further back.

In 2001, he took offense at a student’s email to faculty and fellow students that called the 9/11 attacks a tragedy but accused the American government of imperialist warfare in the Middle East, the Star News of Wilmington wrote at the time.

Adams wrote back, “Your claimed interest in promoting rational discussion is dishonest. It is an intentionally divisive diatribe. ... I hope that your bad speech serves as a catalyst for better speech by others,” the newspaper reported in 2001.

Adams’ message drew accusations of harassment, and the student who wrote the original email said she received many other messages she considered threatening. She requested and received a log of Adams’ email.

University police investigated but took no action. Still, the dust-up over the email made national news and drew involvement from the civil liberties group Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, supporting Adams.

One of the messages investigated by campus police came from then-student Krysten Scott, according to The Seahawk campus newspaper. She told the newspaper that she may have lost her temper but said nothing threatening.

Scott and Adams later became engaged and married, the Star News reported. Her name appears on the deed to Adams’ house, though a Facebook profile shows that she has since remarried.

She and others in the family could not be reached by The News & Observer on Friday.

TRIBUTES FROM CONSERVATIVES
Tributes from conservatives and free speech advocates filled online sites Thursday.

“He loved his students, and his students loved him back,” David French, editor of The Dispatch conservative newsletter, said in a tweet. “He won teaching awards. He won service awards. His case helped preserve academic freedom. ... At the same time, there was pain he did not show. He suffered loss he did not discuss.”

Grace Morgan, a former student who now works for Taxpayers Protection Alliance, tweeted, “He was unbelievably smart, funny, encouraging, and kind. He taught with such a passion for criminology and a deep understanding of the constitution.”

Neighbors saw a regular man who jogged daily and exercised in the yard, and they wondered at his other life online.

“I was interested in talking to him once I found out exactly what he was all about,” Hanley said. “I was like, ‘How do you handle that much pressure on you? You know nationwide people turned against you. How do you handle something like that? How do you handle that kind of stress? Obviously, I wish none of this happened, it shouldn’t happen to anybody no matter how controversial you are.”

https://www.newsobserver.com/article244460137.html

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

"University of North Carolina Wilmington professor Mike Adams' death was discovered after a friend who hadn't seen or heard from him "in a couple of days" called the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday and asked that deputies check on him, sheriff's Lt. Jerry Brewer told NBC News"

I wonder if they have an estimated date of death. Wikipedia lists his date of death as the day he was found but then again Wikipedia isn't always a reliable resource.

Also from the same article:
"Brewer declined to elaborate on a potential cause of death, but said there was no immediate evidence of foul play. Adams, 55, lived alone."

Professor behind 'vile' racist and sexist tweets found dead in North Carolina home

 

[Deleted member 267032]

Are all these posts attacking the victims' opinions suggesting he was murdered because of them? If not, how do they further the understanding of his cause of death?

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

911 records: Mike Adams suffered gunshot wound, had reportedly been ‘erratic’ and stressed
By
Port City Daily staff
-
July 24, 2020

The residence of Mike Adams, former UNCW Professor, who was found dead on Thursday by New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office deputies conducting a wellness check.
WILMINGTON — Records from the New Hanover County 911 center show that a friend of Mike Adams called after not seeing him for several days, telling a dispatcher that the UNCW professor had been ‘erratic’ for several weeks and ‘under a lot of stress.’ Dispatch records also indicate the cause of death was a gunshot wound.

Related: New Hanover Sheriff’s Office investigating death of UNCW Professor Mike Adams

The call came in around 12:26 p.m. on Thursday afternoon. The caller noted that Adams’ car had been parked at the residence for several days but that the caller had not seen him. [Editor’s note: New Hanover County redacts the name and identifying details of all 911 callers before releasing them to the public.]

Responding to a series of routine questions from the dispatcher, the caller noted the Adams did have firearms in his house. Asked if Adams had any physical or mental issues, the caller said friends had were concerned because Adams had been “erratic for the last few weeks — not erratic ‘dangerous,’ but just he’s been under a lot of stress.”

From New Hanover County CAD records: ’66/67′ typically refers to ‘contact medical examiner’ for a death.
Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) records of the incident are sparse. New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office (NHCSO) Deputies entered Adams’ residence at 2:06 p.m. and quickly established that the ‘rest of the house was clear,’ and then noting ‘gsw’ or gunshot wound. Shortly afterward, CSI and detectives were called, the medical examiner was contacted, and the crime scene log was closed around 4:50 p.m.

NHCSO is still investigating and has not released any additional information since confirming Adams’ death on Thursday evening. A cause of death has not been officially reported.

911 records: Mike Adams suffered gunshot wound, had reportedly been ‘erratic’ and stressed | Port City Daily

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

Are all these posts attacking the victims' opinions suggesting he was murdered because of them? If not, how do they further the understanding of his cause of death?

I agree, it seems the news is showcasing the backlash almost as if they aren't talking about someone who just died. The fact they haven't released the ruling of death yet could be they haven't fully ruled out foul play. That could be why it's focused on especially the timing right before receiving his retirement.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

They posted what his friend said about him that is absolutely beautiful.

David French, an editor for the The Dispatch, a conservative news magazine Adams also wrote for, tweeted his tribute on Thursday, calling him a friend.

"I disagreed with Mike, and I loved Mike," the tweet thread read. "He could frustrate the heck out of me. I'll never forget condemning his worst statements right in front of him, speaking to the jury in closing arguments. But he was so much more than his tweets. He was relentless in his defense of life. He was fierce in his defense of free speech and due process. For everybody. Not just his allies. He was a good friend. He loved his students, and his students loved him back."

French noted that Adams dealt with personal loss and pain he never spoke about, but did not elaborate on specifics.

911 call: UNCW professor Mike Adams 'erratic' for weeks before death

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

His friend also wrote an article about him.

A Eulogy for a Friend, a Lament for our Nation
America today—broken people, breaking each other.


This week a friend of mine died, and people across the country celebrated his death.

His name was Mike Adams. He was a “controversial” conservative Christian professor from the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, and he was found dead in his home this Thursday. I was stunned. I’m still stunned. Today, I’m going to tell you two stories—a story about Mike and a story about us.

At the end of the musical Hamilton, the final song asks the question, “Who tells your story?” If in this case the answer for Mike is, “The mainstream media,” then the answer is deeply, gravely unjust. To take a few examples, here’s USA Today’s headline about his death, “North Carolina Professor Who Resigned Amid Controversy Over His ‘Vile’ Tweets Found Dead.” CNN was a bit milder: “Former University of North Carolina Professor Who Resigned Amid Controversy Found Dead in His Home.” BuzzFeed, however, went all out, “A Professor Who Was Known for His Racist, Misogynistic Tweets Was Found Dead in His Home.”

There it is—a man’s life largely defined by the worst possible characterization of his worst tweets. You can read them. They’re linked in the articles. But that’s a fraction of Mike’s story.


A Eulogy for a Friend, a Lament for our Nation

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

Cause of death was released. Ruled as suicide.

UNCW professor Mike Adams’ death ruled suicide, deputies say