Delaware Prof. Says Otto Warmbier, Student Who Died After NK Detention, Got What He Deserved

A professor at the University of Delaware is under fire after she wrote on Facebook that Otto Warmbier, the University of Virginia student who recently died after being released from detention in North Korea, got what he deserved.

Kathy Dettwyler, an adjunct professor at the university's anthropology department, wrote in a since deleted Facebook post that Warmbier was typical of the mindset of the "young, white, rich, clueless males who come into my classes."

A screenshot of the Dettwyler's deleted Facebook post was captured by the website Campus Reform.

"His parents, ultimately, are to blame for his growing up thinking he could get away with whatever he wanted," Dettwyler wrote. "Maybe in the US, where young, white, rich, clueless white males get away with raping women. Not so much in North Korea."

The University of Delaware issued a statement responding to Dettwyler's comments, saying they do not reflect the position of the university.

"We condemn any and all messages that endorse hatred and convey insensitivity toward a tragic event such as the one that Otto Warmbier and his family suffered," the statement said. "The University of Delaware values respect and civility and we are committed to global education and study abroad; therefore we find these comments particularly distressing and inconsistent with our values. Our sympathies are with the Warmbier family."

Warmbier died Tuesday, shortly after his release from North Korea where he was detained for almost a year and a half. Just a week before that, Warmbier had been released by North Korea, at which time his family learned that he was in a coma. Doctors said he was suffering from Unresponsive Wakefulness Syndrome, meaning he was awake but not showing signs of awareness.

The cause of the condition was an "extensive loss of brain tissue," meaning that his brain was deprived of oxygen at some point. One possible cause for this was cardiopulmonary arrest, however doctors said they could not speculate about what might have led to the condition.

Image via Kim Kwang Hyon/Associated Press