Melissa King (Photo: MissDelawareUSA.com)BETHANY BEACH, Del.- Eighteen-year-old Melissa King from Bethany Beach was crowned Miss Delaware Teen USA this past November but gave up her crown on Tuesday. King sent her resignation to pageant officials through her lawyer amid speculation and published reports about an adult video that claims to star her.
When King was crowned Miss Delaware Teen USA, it came as a prideful moment for her small hometown community.
"We had gotten good reports on the young woman and people here locally were very excited to have a small community, somebody earning a very glamorous tribute," said Bethany Beach resident Joe McNerey.
The news of King's resignation and controversy came as a surprise to many.
"You hate to see anything like this happen because the kids work so hard to get something like that and then this kind of news comes out, it's just a total shock.
In published reports about the adult video, King said the person in the tape is not her. But some fear the damage has been done to her title.
"Since these things are at least projected to represent more than just physical success, then surely it would tarnish it, if it's true," McNerey said.
Numerous phone calls made by WBOC to King's legal representative about her resignation and the reason behind it have gone unreturned.
