Chief Tom Frost, lead instructor for Ashley's JROTC program, was suspended with pay after allegedly posting "do they truly matter?" on a story about a shooting in Creekwood.

NEW HANOVER COUNTY -- An Ashley High School JROTC instructor was suspended this week after his comment on a Facebook post about a shooting in Creekwood went viral.

In an email Tuesday, New Hanover County Schools spokeswoman Valita Quattlebaum wrote that Chief Tom Frost, lead instructor for Ashley's JROTC program, "has been suspended immediately with pay pending an investigation by the New Hanover County Schools Human Resources Division."

This week a comment from Frost's Facebook page was made on an article about four men being shot in Wilmington's Creekwood community and witnesses at the scene being uncooperative. The comment read, "Do they truly matter?" As of Tuesday, nearly 400 people had shared a post with screen-captures of Frost's comments.

One of the four men shot Sept 3., Darryl Freeman, 28, died a week later from his injuries. Three other victims, 21-year-old Wakeel Stewart, Maurice Bellamy, 25; and Tyree Johnson, 20, were treated at New Hanover Regional Medical Center and released.

Frost did not immediately respond to a StarNews request for comment on this story, but some Facebook commenters and a caller suggested Frost's comment referred to the uncooperative witnesses' value to the investigation.

"I have (known) chief for many years, and with a NJROTC company of 126 there were Hispanics, whites, blacks, Asians and even children from the Middle East that spoke very little English, yet he called every single one of us his 'kids'," Karlie Milliken wrote in the most liked story comment on the StarNews' Facebook page. "Tom Frost is a good man, he served his country and is now serving his community, this whole situation is absolutely ridiculous."

But others on social media said Frost's comment was insensitive and had racial implications.

Deshoan White, a 19-year-old former Ashley student, made one of the Facebook posts sharing Frost's comment.

"If he feels this way about the black community then he has to feel this way about his black students," White wrote. In the hours after he posted the pictures, dozens of commenters weighed in to support Frost or discuss the racial implications of his comment.

In an interview Tuesday, White said he had not expected his post to get as much reaction as it had. He said he also doubts Frost was trying to incite a response, but said the comment was hurtful.

"I was shocked. I was like, 'What do you mean our lives don’t matter?'" White said. "I'm not trying to attack this man. I don’t want him to get kicked out of a job or anything, but he needs to watch what he’s saying."

According to a StarNews database of public employee salaries, as of fall 2015 Frost earned $60,822 annually in salary and an ROTC pay supplement and local teacher pay supplement. Social media posts indicated he served 23 years with the U.S. Navy before joining New Hanover County Schools.

Reporter Cammie Bellamy can be reached at 910-343-2339 or Cammie.Bellamy@StarNewsOnline.com.