Man killed in Davidson County officer-involved shooting was being pursued by bondsmen
Davidson County NC May 28 2021 Adam Hartley, the man killed in an officer-involved shooting over the weekend, was being pursued by bondsmen prior to his death, according to the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office.
Bondsmen began pursuing Hartley late last week. It’s unclear exactly why they sought him.
Hartley’s interactions with law enforcement began years before.
In 2011, he pled no contest to voluntary manslaughter in the death of his roommate and partner, William Dean Sink Jr. A plea of no contest means he admitted to the facts in the case but did not admit guilt.
On May 23, 2010, Hartley called 911 to report an accidental shooting. Davidson County Sheriff’s deputies arrived to find Sink lying nude inside the front door of the home with a gunshot wound to his chest. Hartley told deputies he thought someone was trying to break into his home and shot Sink by mistake.
Hartley is the brother of former Lexington Fire Chief Phil Hartley.
“My brother doesn’t have a violent bone in his body,” the chief said at Adam Hartley’s sentencing hearing in 2011. ”
Despite what you have read in the papers, my brother is a good person. He is a productive member of society. He’s done a lot of good things. Even to this day, I am still trying to process everything.”
At the time, neighbors provided statements to the court saying Hartley was controlling of Sink and became easily aggravated.
Hartley was released from prison in July 2017.
In December 2020, Hartley was involved in a car wreck that killed a man in Rowan County. He was charged with felony death by motor vehicle, driving while impaired, driving without an operator’s license, reckless driving and driving to the left of center.
Hartley was also recently charged with misdemeanor assault with a deadly weapon in Guilford County. He was scheduled to appear in court on June 8, according to online court calendars.
Deputies with the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office began pursuing Hartley on Saturday after receiving a report of an exchange of gunfire involving Hartley, according to a news release. Although bondsmen were looking for Hartley earlier last week, Capt. Cory Mann said the sheriff’s office wasn’t involved in the pursuit until receiving a call about shots fired on Saturday.
The sheriff’s office is still investigating the cause of that exchange of gunfire, and as of Tuesday morning, no one had been arrested in that incident.
On Saturday, deputies tracked Hartley through the woods and into the backyard of a home in the 9000 block of N.C. Highway 150 South. Hartley was armed with a firearm and edged weapon. He reportedly aimed and shot at deputies in response to commands to drop his weapons and get on the ground, according to the news release.
Deputies returned fire and struck Hartley. He died early Sunday at a hospital. No one else was injured in the encounter.
The N.C. State Bureau of Investigation is investigating the shooting, and the deputies involved were placed on administrative leave, as is common procedure.
