Adult film star August Ames committed suicide at age 23 after she was bullied relentlessly on Twitter after she refused to work with a guy who appeared in a gay porn film.
Ames’ body was found in her home in Camarillo, California on Tuesday morning.
Her grieving husband, Kevin Moore, said “She was the kindest person I ever knew and she meant the world to me. Please leave this as a private family matter in this difficult time.”
Ames, who starred in almost 290 films, killed herself just days after Twitter users attacked her for tweeting about working with a gay porn actor amid heightened fears about contracting HIV.
“whichever (lady) performer is replacing me tomorrow for @EroticaXNews , you’re shooting with a guy who has shot gay porn, just to let cha know,” Ames tweeted on Dec. 3.
A Twitter user named @AlexisMonroexxx responded:
“I think it’s hilarious that your discriminating against a man who does/did gay porn when half of this industry has performed with such performers.”
But others defended Ames for choosing to protect herself.
Former adult film actress Jenna Jameson slammed a Twitter user who was among those bullying Ames on Twitter.
“SHAME ON YOU… you need to re-evaluate your life. Your community is becoming a lynch mob, when anyone says anything you dislike,” she told him.
@NoelleEaston tweeted:
“Gay performers do not have to follow the rigorous testing protocol straight performers must go through every 14 days making it EXTREMELY dangerous to work with them & then go back into f-cking straight performers after.”
And user Nick Snider wrote:
“As a gay male I must agree. It makes me sad knowing that the lgbt community practically become a violent Lynch mob when they don’t agree or have their feelings hurt. Point blank no matter what the differences are someone took their life. This isn’t a moment for more hate.”
California is presently the only state in America that passed a law making it a misdemeanor to intentionally infect others with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
Gay men and other men who have sex with men top the list of new HIV transmissions. Despite millions of dollars spent on education and prevention, the national rate of HIV/AIDS cases continues to skyrocket.
