Associate Professor Daniel Krier was found to have abused ISU administrative complaint procedure against two ISU sociology professors Friday. A jury ruled that Krier did not use the ISU administrative complaint process for its intended use and awarded the plaintiffs, Terry Besser and Betty Dobratz, $18,442 for monetary damages and $24,000 in punitive damages.

The plaintiffs alleged Krier wrongfully filed complaints of gender discrimination against them because they were critical of his academic scholarship. They also claimed that he made the false complaints to eliminate them “from consideration of his application for tenure and to intimidate them,” according to a news release from Mark Sherinian, the plaintiffs’ attorney.

The ruling was the culmination of nearly two years of an ongoing battle between Krier and members of the sociology department.

Krier filed an administrative complaint March 12, 2008, against five ISU faculty members including ISU professors of sociology Besser, Dobratz and Stephen Sapp; and associate professors David Schweingruber and Susan Stewart.

The complaint was sent to Carla Espinoza, associate vice president for human resources and director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity Office. Krier alleged that Dobratz, Besser and Sapp engaged in misconduct including discriminatory harassment and retaliation for filing complaint of the harassment, according to court records.

At the time, Dobratz and Besser served on the ISU Sociology Department Preliminary Evaluation Committee. Composed of three full professors and three associate professors, the committee meets with each assistant professor annually, in order to provide them with advice.

In his complaint, Krier alleged that during a PEC meeting in April 2007, Besser and Dobratz “discussed how [Krier] would never come up for tenure.” He said he found their review to be “hostile, dismissive” of his accomplishments and discouraging.

Sherinian said during the meeting the committee was critical of Krier “for not having sustained research and publications.”

Krier’s complaint also alleged there were “recurrent references” to him as a “testosterone-dripping male” and unsubstantiated rumors that he was a “serial sexual harasser.” He believed he was being discriminated against because of his gender, sexual orientation, marital status and what Krier perceived to be as a vendetta against him because of his professional relationship with Paul Lasley, chairperson of the department of sociology.

“The same people who are Paul Lasley’s most vocal detractors are also those who have been most hostile to me,” he said.

Besser said Sapp and herself were removed from Krier’s PEC because of his complaint.

On May 11, 2008, Krier filed an additional complaint of retaliation against Dobratz and Besser. According to court documents, Krier claimed the requests made by Besser and Dobratz to have him removed from the sociology Program of Study committees of three graduate students was a form of retaliation that violates university policy.

Meanwhile Lon Moeller, University of Iowa clinical professor and associate dean, investigated the complaints made by Krier and concluded the evidence did not support Krier’s claims, according to documents created by both plaintiff and defense attorneys. Moeller’s findings were reviewed by the Faculty Review Board on June 25, 2008, and recommended that the complaints be dismissed.

Three weeks later, Elizabeth Hoffman, executive vice president and provost, adopted the findings of the board and dismissed the complaints against Dobratz and Besser.

Then in the fall of 2008, Krier was up for promotion and tenure. The department of sociology Promotion and Tenure Committee is composed of all tenured sociology professors who, along with the department chairperson, submit a review of the applicant’s work and qualifications.

“I was involved in the discussion, but there were several people who thought I shouldn’t take part in it, because of the complaint and that I should recluse myself, but I didn’t,” Besser said. “I did not want to be intimidated. I was exonerated in this case and I felt the claim itself shouldn’t mean that I can’t take part in the process and that’s what they implied.”

The committee voted seven for granting tenure, eight against and six abstained.

“Obviously this is a very unusual situation. Normally when a professor goes up for tenure they have tremendous support from their own department,” Sherinian said. “Ninety percent of applications come with full support of the faculty.”

The committee’s report and Lasley’s memorandum were sent to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Promotion and Tenure Review Committee. The faculty’s summary does not express concerns about a candidate except in listing the weaknesses of the applicant, Besser said. She said a representative of the LAS committee, professor of mathematics Clifford Bergman, testified he was surprised by the divided vote.

“Chairman Lasley claimed at trial that he summarized the concerns of the faculty, that led to this very divided vote among the faculty, in a memorandum that went to the Dean of the College of LAS. That memorandum apparently supported Dr. Krier’s application. However, given Professor Bergman’s testimony, it does not appear that Chairman Lasley communicated the concerns of the faculty at all,” Sherinian said.

Despite the concern of at least one committee member, Krier’s application was submitted to the provost and President Gregory Geoffroy, both of whom approved the application. In April 2009 the Iowa Board of Regents approved Krier’s promotion to associate professor with tenure, according to the provost’s Web site.

“The reason we believe that Dr. Krier got tenure was because the legitimate concerns of the faculty were not communicated through the tenure process,” Sherinian said.

Krier, Lasley and Dobratz could not be reached for comment Monday.