Records: Ex-US Naval Academy professor sent shirtless photos

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – A U.S. Naval Academy official’s letter alerting a tenured professor of his termination says the professor sent students shirtless photos.

The Washington Post reported Friday that it obtained a copy of the Aug. 15 letter to 64-year-old ex-professor Bruce Fleming.

Academic Dean and Provost Andrew T. Phillips also says in the letter Fleming touched students during class without consent. Fleming says this refers to hugs and shoulder pats. It also says Fleming called some students “right-wing extremists,” which Fleming denies.

Fleming says one photo he shared was a “meme” of him flexing an arm. He says the other was from his modeling days and was shared while referring to body imagery in a poem.

Fleming says his firing is an attempt to silence his criticism of the school, and he plans to appeal.

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Information from: The Washington Post, http://www.washingtonpost.com