Applicant with Troubling Allegations of Stalking and Sexual Harassment Interviewed for College of the Redwoods VP of Student Services Position Yesterday

Dr. Howard Irvin being interviewed yesterday as seen on this screenshot from Zoom.

Yesterday, a former Los Angeles police officer and college level educator, who has faced allegations of having a violent criminal history and a $1.5 million civil judgment against him, was interviewed in Eureka for the position of College of the Redwoods Vice President of Student Services. This interview took place even though he had been found liable for ongoing sexual harassment of a coworker. The jury’s verdict held both him and his former employer, the Los Angeles Community College District, responsible for his hiring despite his alleged troubled past. Now, appealing the southern California court’s 10 million dollar judgment sullying his name, Dr. Howard J. Irvin, Jr hopes to take a new position behind the Redwood Curtain. 

College of the Redwoods is in the process of examining two candidates vying for it’s VP of Student Services, and completed an interview with one of two applicants approved for consideration (from a larger group of applicants) on Thursday afternoon, drawing the attention of concerned staff members and students who were keen to ask about the applicant’s allegedly sordid history of sexual assault, harassment, stalking, and abuse of power as a Los Angeles police officer, and as an administrator in higher education in California. 

According to a Los Angeles Times October 30, 1997 article, 

In December 1994, a female LAPD officer who had been dating [Howard Irvin] contacted Long Beach police about a 1992 assault that left her with a fractured neck, according to a police report. Although a criminal case was never filed because the statute of limitations had expired, the female officer did obtain a restraining order against Irvin and he was suspended by the LAPD for 25 days in October 1995.

In July 1996, records show, Irvin was accused of another domestic dispute, this one in San Diego. Although the woman in that case refused prosecution, Irvin currently faces an LAPD Board of Rights hearing that alleges 15 separate acts of misconduct, including placing the barrel of a handgun against the victim’s head.

A $10 MILLION JUDGMENT 

Los Angeles County College Professor Sabrina Odom filed a civil complaint alleging workplace sexual harassment against Irvin and the LA Community College District in October of 2018, listing seven alleged causes of action, and won.  She was also subsequently awarded a hefty amount of attorneys’ fees and court costs in a post trial motion. 

The Court found Irvin culpable of having sexually harassed Odom, a fellow educator, and retaliating against her for reporting his conduct with her appropriate superiors, in violation of California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act. This resulted in an award for damages in the amount of $10,000,000 total, with $1.5 million specifically levied against Irvin as an individual, and the remaining $8.5 million against the LA Community College District (LACCD) for their negligent hiring of Irvin, allegedly while knowing of his “history of discipline for sexual assault,” according to the complaint. 

The case details, judgment and rulings on the matter thus far can be found at the court’s website by searching the case number BC724401.  

The complaint for damages filed by Odom’s attorneys specifically alleges that Irvin “abused his position as Vice President” of student services to “demand sexual favors from students and faculty.” 

The complaint describes Dr. Irvin using his position of authority to sexually harass and threaten women, stating the harassment was “severe, pervasive, continuous and offensive,” specifically stating that Irvin “asked plaintiff to have sex with him” alleging that he “used his position as Vice President to try and force plaintiff to have sex with him.” 

The complaint repeatedly states reasoning for the lawsuit, explaining that Irvin was hired by the LACCD in the position that CR is actively considering him for locally.  The complaint reads that the LA district hired Irvin as their “Vice President of Student Services when they knew or should have known he had been the subject of multiple claims of sexual assault by female police officers who had gotten restraining orders against him. Prior to being hired by [the school district] was a police officer. During the time he was a police officer he was accused of sexual assault.” 

The complaint continues to detail disturbing behavior which prompted the 2018 complaint reading, “He was accused of stalking several female LAPD detectives and officers who had gotten a restraining order against him. He was further subject to restraining orders by three other females… It is inconceivable to believe that (LACCD) would have hired IRVIN without checking his background and would not have investigated prior allegations when plaintiff complained of the sexual harassment.” 

Following the trial outcome, last fall,  Irvin spoke with local reporters regarding the judgment. According to the Contra Costa College Advocate, Irvin candidly stated on the record, “There were some things, what, 20-something years ago. But all that stuff has been cleared and things of that nature have been adjudicated,” and noted, “With the invention of computers and things of that nature, (moving forward) is very difficult because these things (criminal records) can be brought up and are left open in your life.”

The LACCD school district’s motion for a new trial was denied last February, and the case has continued working its way through an appeals process since. 

Still, while responding to questions about his past during the interview process on Thursday, Irvin told staff and students that there’s more to the story than meets the eye, and emphasized during his interview that he would be forthcoming with court documents, including in regard to the serious allegations of domestic abuse dating back to when he was a member of the late 1990’s era Los Angeles police force. 

In regard to those older allegations of sexual abuse, threats and harassment that led to the restraining orders issued against him while he served as a Los Angeles police officer, the LA Times wrote in 1997, “After bailing out, records show, Irvin was rearrested in January and eventually pleaded guilty in Orange County to one felony count of stalking, one felony count of terrorist threats and two misdemeanor counts of violating a restraining order.” 

According to one of Irvin’s LinkedIn profiles, “He launched his career in education in 1998,” ultimately leaving a career in law enforcement behind. Mr. Irvin asserted in his interview on Thursday at CR, that the LA Times had “misreported” on the matter, adding, “ It’s hurtful, because the truth is not out there.” 

When asked in general about what drew him to apply for the rural student advisory position at CR, Howard Irvin said, “I applied for the job because this is where I want to be.”  

While, he did field some softball questions regarding how he feels about the North Coast, and a more country living atmosphere in rural Humboldt County, there were also pointed questions regarding the accusations against him.  Irvin indicated that the questions expressing concern about those past allegations and findings during the interview that he thought it was to be expected, and that it was “fair” to have been asked about the matter, “because that’s what they read.” 

The HIRING PROCESS

While College of the Redwoods navigates the process of hiring a new Vice President of Student Services – a job currently held in interim by Dr. Crystal Morse, the other candidate being interviewed for the job – there is a process that is required to be followed, which is largely dictated by the State of California.

According to CR’s President Keith Flamer, who answered our questions by email, “The hiring committee looks at all applications and ranks them according to their qualifications and the job requirements as posted in the job description,” and added that his office was “not aware of Dr. Irvin’s past” when asked if a background check had been completed as of yet. While there will be a background check conducted, that part of the assessment does not occur prior to the interview. 

Pressed as to whether or not the administration had knowledge of any of the allegations against Irvin, Flamer explained, “California Government Code § 12952 prohibits California public and private employers with at least 5 employees from asking about a candidate’s criminal conviction record on a job application and before offering them a job. Additionally, internal policies of fairness, equity and confidentiality preclude the hiring committee from any background research on candidates before they are offered the job.”

When asked why Dr. Irvin was selected to be interviewed, President Flamer responded, “He was deemed by the committee to have the requisite skills and employment experience to be forwarded for an interview.” Flamer added, “Our policy dictates that the selection of candidates to interview is based on the candidate’s possessing the required qualifications for the position. Following the interviews, reference checks are conducted on candidates the screening committee has determined should be considered by the President to hire.” 

Beyond the information gleaned from formal interviews, President Flamer offered some additional assurance of what aspects of a candidate’s personal life would be examined. “Following the interviews, reference checks are conducted on the candidates that the screening committee submits to my office for hiring. The reference checks will include an investigation of professional experience and personal qualities relevant to performance of the position,” he wrote. 

“The reference check will be conducted if Dr. Irvin is recommended for consideration by the President as someone who can do the job as Vice President of Student Services,” explained President Flamer’s in his email response to our inquiry. 

Once the interviews and investigation process are concluded, President Flamer will announce the successful applicant to the community, as the new VP of Student Services. 

In the interest of transparency, this reporter graduated from College of the Redwoods as did Kym Kemp, RHBB’s publisher and all of their sons and a good portion of their family attended at least some classes there.