Posted on 11/10/2004 8:49:24 AM PST by Doomonyou
SRJC teacher found dead
Instructor's 'kill the president' e-mail assignment controversial
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
By PAUL PAYNE
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Michael H. Ballou, a Santa Rosa Junior College instructor questioned last year by the Secret Service over a controversial assignment involving President Bush, has died, the Sonoma County coroner said Tuesday.
The 49-year-old political science instructor died Saturday at his Guerneville home where he lived alone, Sheriff's Sgt. Will Wallman said.
The cause of his death is under investigation, but detectives have ruled out homicide, Wallman said. "There's nothing to say he died at the hands of another, but, otherwise, the book is wide open."
He said an autopsy has been conducted and authorities await the results of toxicology and microscopic tissue tests.
A neighbor discovered the body.
Ballou, who also spelled his name Ballow, was a part-time teacher at the junior college's Petaluma campus and had been on the faculty since 1990.
Ballou was born in Ogden, Utah. He had a master's degree from Brigham Young University and a bachelor's degree from Weber State College, an SRJC spokeswoman said.
He became embroiled in controversy in the summer of 2003 when he assigned students to compose an e-mail with the words "kill the president" in the body of the text.
Ballou said he was trying to demonstrate to students' fear of government and the "growing police state."
Although he said students were instructed not to send the message, one e-mailed it to the Washington office of Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena. Within days, Secret Service agents arrived to question Ballou .
Ballou defended his lesson, saying he meant no harm to the president. In a newspaper column, Ballou said the response proved his point.
Students supported him, saying it was a valuable experience. But faculty, administrators and parents weren't impressed. Robert Agrella, the college president, said he was "ashamed and embarrassed," and fellow teachers wrote letters to the editor, calling the assignment irresponsible. However, administrators stopped short of disciplinary action.
"He was a pretty controversial guy," Agrella said Tuesday.
Suicide. Couldn't handle another four years of the repression that won't allow his brilliance to be understood.
Gee, the air seems cleaner here in Santa Rosa, today!
In all seriousness, I would never trust any man who had multiple spellings for his own last name.
Never is a long time...
Once again, the climactic scene in Godfather III comes to mind, when Michael calls all his chits in.
He probably killed himself after Pres Bush was re-elected. To make a statement???!!!
Results: Grape Kool-aid.
most california communist homosexuals die very young of diseased ridden bodies - for california, that is a natural death to rot away from the inside.
I'll bet good money it's a drug overdose.
I definitely do believe in divine retribution. But that's just it. It's divine--it's totally up to Him. And I doubt that even He is happy about it, since He created all of us.
This is nuts. You can get rid of an adjunct professor any time you like. Just don't hire him the next semester.
I wonder if this guy committed suicide because he did in fact eventually lose his job and couldn't find another? Maybe he couldn't accept the prospect of driving a cab or working in a supermarket.
Now he is a pretty dead guy.
The sort of mental problems that go along with his antics and "beliefs" are quite consistent with suicide.
Uber Liberals are almost always depressed or afflicted with a mental or psycological problem of some kind.
Same here in Petaluma!
The guy should have been charged with a felony terroristic threats and contributing to the deliquency of minors. Also, you cannot advocate the overthrough of the US government it is against the law.
< Frank Sinatra >
Make someone happy
make just one someone happy
And you will be happy too.
< /Frank Sinatra >
Es verdad! Y si, se puede.
PING! I bet heroin...
Probably couldn't afford an airline ticket to Florida for post election "Therapy" and decided to cash it in.
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