Texas astrophysicist sues UWM, says his reputation was smeared in sex assault allegation

Bruce Vielmetti | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A Texas astrophysicist who never studied or worked at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee says the university has derailed his career by claiming he engaged in sexual misbehavior in West Virginia with a former UWM grad student.

If it weren't for the serious allegations in the professor's lawsuit, the whole thing might seem like an episode of "The Big Bang Theory," a TV comedy series about nerdy scientists' struggles with social interactions with women.

But, rather, it's another example of universities facing backlash for aggressive monitoring of sexual misbehavior highlighted by the #MeToo movement.

The plaintiff, identified only as "John Doe," says he met "Jane Doe" at a West Virginia bar while both were attending a conference of the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves, or NANOGrav, in 2011.

"Sitting together at the hotel bar, Jane presented herself as a daring and sexually

adventurous woman," the suit states.

"Jane solicited John Doe’s thoughts on sex and a 'no strings attached' (NSA) relationship. John was intrigued by and interested in Jane’s openness and forward nature."

At the time, Jane was a doctoral student at UWM. John was a co-founder of NANOGrav, which he described as being, in 2011, a loose collaboration of researchers using radio telescopes to detect and study gravitational waves.

They hit it off immediately, the suit claims, spent six nights together during the conference and continued their relationship for two more years, meeting up at NANOgrav and related events.

But in 2013, after John says he declined Jane's invitation to upgrade their relationship, it ended.

In 2016, Jane complained to NANOGrav that her initial sexual encounter with John was not consensual. It issued a defamatory report about John, his suit states.





UWM heard about the NANOGrav complaint and launched its own investigation, though Jane had by then earned her Ph.D. and left UWM. It found John "responsible" for sexual assault and harassment and shared the report with his Texas employer.

"John Doe has sustained tremendous reputational, occupational, and financial

damages as a result of UWM’s actions," his suit claims.

The suit, filed in Milwaukee federal court, names three UWM officials as defendants — Nelida Cortes and Jamie Cimpl-Wiemer from the Office of Equity and Diversity Services and Johannes Britz, the provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, who denied Doe's appeal of the findings.

The Board of Regents and UWM have already been dismissed from the case. State lawyers are currently seeking dismissal of the rest of John Doe's claims.

John Doe cites Jane Doe's text messages

John says Jane's former roommate has several texts from her that show Jane's willing and continued interest in John, and later, her frustration with her boyfriend's concerns about her past boyfriends, including John Doe.

It was that jealous boyfriend, who later became Jane Doe's husband, who led Jane, in 2014, to rewrite the narrative of her relationship with John Doe, tell others that he had raped her and eventually to file the complaint with NANOGrav.

John Doe claims the NANOGrav investigator declined to review the texts from Jane or offer him the opportunity to make a meaningful response. The report concluded John Doe didn't appreciate the imbalance of power in the relationship and that being intoxicated around students and junior collaborators showed bad judgment.

John Doe says social drinking and romantic relationships among all levels of NANOGrav members were common.

John Doe asserts that UWM had no jurisdiction to investigate him. During that investigation, Jane Doe denied sending the texts to her friend.

RELATED: UW-Stevens Point sexual harassment case spurs UW System to review hiring policies

UWM says it investigated John Doe because other UWM students might interact with him at academic conferences and meetings.

"Coincidentally, UWM is conducting a similar investigation against one of its own

professors, also a member of NANOGrav, accused of similar charges" involving a woman who was a UWM undergraduate at the time of the allegations, John Doe's suit contends.

That same professor is pressuring Doe to leave NANOGrav, he says.

Doe says UWM shared its findings with his Texas university, resulting in his constructive termination.

Doe asks the court to order UWM to vacate its findings and restrain it from any further adverse disciplinary records, retaining any such records or reporting its actions to third parties.

UWM spokesperson Michelle Johnson said officials do not comment on pending cases.