On what turned out to be the final day of his life, Bubba Copeland seemed to have turned a corner.

Friends and family, as well as members of the church he pastored in Phenix City, had encouraged the Smith Station mayor after two stories appeared about him on the 1819 News, a conservative website once owned by the Alabama Policy Institute.

That Friday, he got two new tires for a car. He stopped by Smiths Station’s government center to pick up a new city credit card. And he wrote a letter to his congregation, thanking them for holding a pastor appreciation day.

“I look forward to continuing our journey of faith, growth, and service together,” he wrote.

He shot himself later that day, even as loved ones tried to talk him out of it.

The story of Copeland, who died last Nov. 3, is documented in a story in Esquire, “Right-Wing Media and the Death of an Alabama Pastor: An American Tragedy.”

Copeland, a 49-year-old married father of three, died by suicide two days after the conservative news site published photos of him wearing women’s clothing and makeup.

On the day of his death, the same site published a story accusing him of using the names and photos of local residents, including a minor, without permission in posts, including the real name of a local businesswoman in a fictional story about a man who develops a deadly obsession with taking over her identity.

An examination into the electronic devices belonging to Copelandfollowing his suicide turned up no criminal wrongdoing, Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones said last year.

According to the Esquire piece, Copeland led a Bible study on Nov. 1 after the first story broke. His Scripture verses came from the 23rd Psalm. He then walked into a church trustee meeting that last two hours.

“We did not suspend him,” David White said.

“We did not reprimand him. We did not fire him…We talked to him frankly. We expressed our shock and disappointment, and then we replaced that with our concern and our love and our support for our brother, who was suffering. The church would be fine. Now it was Bubba we were worried about.”

One day before his death, he drafted resignation letters as mayor and pastor.

“Admittedly, there have been instances where my wife and I have taken private pictures within the confines of our home, which should have never been shared online,” the letter, which was never sent, read. “I realize this was a significant lapse in judgment and a personal failure, for which I bear complete and absolute responsibility…. I apologize for any distress or humiliation my actions may have caused. Love to all, Bubba.”

But after the second story appeared, people began to fear for Copeland’s safety. He was telling people that he didn’t know if he could go on.

On the afternoon of Nov. 3, Lisa Deason, Copeland’s communications director, confronted him at his home, holding onto him as he tried to leave.

“I’m going to do it in front of you if you don’t move,” he said.

As Deason tried to keep him from driving off, her phone rang. It was Jeff Pitts with the sheriff’s office. He asked to speak to Copeland.

“Bubba, it’s Major Pitts, Jeff Pitts.”

“Jeff, man, I love you,” Copeland said. “But I’m done. I can’t do this no more.”

He called his son, Carter.

“I love you, buddy,” Bubba said. “I’ve lived my whole life to make sure that you are successful and that you have what you need. And I just want you to know that I love you more than anything in this world.”

“I knew immediately what that meant,” Carter says. “And I just said, ‘Please, Dad, please tell me you’re not doing what I think you’re doing. Please, we can get through this.’ “

Copeland was found in Beulah when a slow pursuit was initiated with the mayor’s vehicle. He turned off Lee County Road 279 and on to Lee County Road 275 just north of Yarboughs Crossroads and pulled over.

“He exited the vehicle, produced a handgun and took his own life,” the sheriff’s office said last year.

Elizabeth White, a WRBL News 3 crime reporter based in Auburn said, “Bubba was down, and they just kept kicking and kicking and kicking. It wasn’t enough for them to just expose him. They wanted to hurt him. It’s devastating to know that for all the good he did, he spent his last days and moments in unbearable anguish.”

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