Joe Gow’s firing and lawsuit stem from the Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents’ discovery in December 2023 that the UW-La Crosse chancellor and his wife, Carmen Wilson, had been producing pornographic videos and publishing erotic books under pseudonyms. The regents removed him as chancellor on December 27, 2023, later stripped his tenured faculty position, and have been fighting his federal First Amendment lawsuit since January 2025. As of mid-2026, the case remains unresolved, held up by a pending motion to dismiss.1Inside Higher Ed. Joe Gow Hangs Legal Limbo
Why Gow Was Fired as Chancellor
Gow had led UW-La Crosse since 2007.2Wall Street Journal. Fired University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Chancellor Loses Tenured Teaching Post Over Porn Videos In December 2023, an anonymous complaint alerted the Board of Regents that he and Wilson were producing adult content.3CBS Minnesota. University of Wisconsin Chancellor Porn Fired La Crosse Human Resources summoned Gow to a meeting, where he confirmed the activities and said they were private conduct by private citizens.4WKOW/News 8000. Joe Gow Says UW Board Violated Due Process When Firing Him
Working under the pseudonyms “Geri and Jay Hart” and the online moniker “Sexy Happy Couple,” the pair had published two books about their lifestyle and posted professionally produced explicit videos on pornography sites, LoyalFans, and OnlyFans.5USA Today. UW-La Crosse Chancellor Fired for Porn Wife Carmen Wilson6Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Who Is Carmen Wilson, Wife of Fired UW-La Crosse Chancellor Joe Gow In their 2015 book they had themselves predicted that if peers found out, a “scandal would ensue” and their careers “likely would be ruined.”
On December 27, 2023, the Board of Regents voted unanimously to terminate Gow as chancellor, effective immediately.7Universities of Wisconsin. Statements on the Termination of Joe Gow as Chancellor of UW-La Crosse UW System President Jay Rothman called the conduct “abhorrent” and said it caused “significant reputational harm” to the university. Board President Karen Walsh described the behavior as “wholly and undeniably inconsistent with his role as chancellor” and said the board was “alarmed, and disgusted.”8Wisconsin Public Radio. Board of Regents Votes Unanimously to Fire UW-La Crosse Chancellor Rothman asserted that Gow “served at the pleasure of the board and wasn’t entitled to any termination process.”4WKOW/News 8000. Joe Gow Says UW Board Violated Due Process When Firing Him
Gow responded by invoking the First Amendment and asserting the right “to create and publish books and videos that explore consensual adult sexuality.” He accused the board of opposing free speech and demanded a public hearing.8Wisconsin Public Radio. Board of Regents Votes Unanimously to Fire UW-La Crosse Chancellor Gow has not challenged the chancellor termination itself in court; he accepts the position was at-will.9Inside Higher Ed. Fired Making Porn Joe Gow Sues Reinstatement
How He Lost His Tenured Faculty Position
The chancellorship was at-will, but Gow also held a separate tenured appointment as a professor of communication studies. After the December firing he was placed on paid administrative leave and remained on the faculty.7Universities of Wisconsin. Statements on the Termination of Joe Gow as Chancellor of UW-La Crosse The same day, Rothman filed a formal complaint under Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapter 4, which governs faculty discipline, seeking dismissal for cause.
A 21-page letter from university attorneys recommended dismissal, alleging that Gow had neglected his chancellor duties to produce pornography, engaged in insubordination, misused university IT resources, damaged the institution’s reputation, and behaved unethically. One specific allegation claimed he prioritized a pornographic video shoot over work calls related to a campus visit by a “famous politician.”10Wisconsin Public Radio. Documents Former UW-La Crosse Chancellor University Time Resources Porn
Faculty Committee Findings
A five-member UW-La Crosse faculty committee voted unanimously on July 11, 2024, to recommend dismissal, finding a “clear preponderance of the evidence” of just cause.11Inside Higher Ed. Faculty Panel Recommends Firing Joe Gow The panel concluded that creating pornography was not inherently unethical but that Gow had “exploited his faculty position to generate more interest and revenue” from the content.3CBS Minnesota. University of Wisconsin Chancellor Porn Fired La Crosse His public response after the chancellor firing was identified as his “most serious misconduct,” because he chose to “capitalize on the controversy” rather than distance himself from it.12Wisconsin Public Radio. UW-La Crosse Faculty Committee Votes to Fire Former Chancellor Joe Gow After Porn Videos
The committee also voted unanimously that Gow had violated university IT policies, including receiving vendor emails for sex toys on university systems.13Inside Higher Ed. Universities of Wisconsin Fires Joe Gow Again12Wisconsin Public Radio. UW-La Crosse Faculty Committee Votes to Fire Former Chancellor Joe Gow After Porn Videos3CBS Minnesota. University of Wisconsin Chancellor Porn Fired La Crosse14CBS Minnesota. UW President Reprimands Chancellor Over Porn Star Speech
New Chancellor James Beeby forwarded the recommendation to the regents, who on September 27, 2024, voted 17 to 0 to fire Gow from his tenured faculty position, ending his employment with the university.13Inside Higher Ed. Universities of Wisconsin Fires Joe Gow Again His tenured faculty salary had been $91,915.15Wisconsin Public Radio. Joe Gow Suing UW System La Crosse
The Federal Lawsuit
In January 2025, Gow sued in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, naming the Board of Regents and President Rothman as defendants.15Wisconsin Public Radio. Joe Gow Suing UW System La Crosse He is represented by the Milwaukee firm Laffey, Leitner and Goode, referred through the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.16WKOW/News 8000. Former UWL Gow’s Federal Trial Set for June 2026 Over Firing Dispute
The suit challenges only the tenure revocation. Gow seeks reinstatement, back pay, and monetary damages. His central claim is that the videos and books with his wife are speech protected by the First Amendment, produced on his own time and budget as a private citizen commenting on matters of public concern, specifically “healthy human sexuality and the best ways to promote strong monogamous marriages.”3CBS Minnesota. University of Wisconsin Chancellor Porn Fired La Crosse
The state has advanced two defenses. First, officials claim qualified immunity, arguing that no reasonable official would have understood that firing a professor in these circumstances violated the First Amendment. Second, the state argues Gow’s activities were meant to “further his personal and commercial interests” rather than “contribute to significant public discourse,” and that he had no First Amendment right to produce pornography “without the expectation of repercussions for employment.”1Inside Higher Ed. Joe Gow Hangs Legal Limbo
Where the Case Stands in Mid-2026
A federal jury trial was originally scheduled for late June 2026 but was postponed in December 2025 while the court considered the state’s motion to dismiss. On June 1, 2026, Gow filed an amended complaint clarifying his claims against defendants in both their individual and official capacities and adding individual damages to his request for reinstatement. The amendment nullified the earlier motion. On June 15, 2026, the state filed a fresh motion to dismiss, again pressing qualified immunity and failure to state a claim. No new trial date has been set.1Inside Higher Ed. Joe Gow Hangs Legal Limbo
The Free Speech Argument
FIRE issued a public statement in June 2024, before the faculty committee hearing, arguing that terminating a tenured professor for producing pornography off the clock violates the First Amendment. The group said “academic freedom generally protects faculty from punishment for what they do or say off the clock” and that the same protections covering political opinions extend to the creation of pornography.17FIRE. FIRE Statement Disciplinary Hearings Against Joe Gow Gow’s case has since been added to FIRE’s “Scholars Under Fire” database.18Journal of Controversial Ideas. Career-Risk Comorbidities
Gow has pointed to recent successful suits by professors fired over comments about conservative activist Charlie Kirk as a possible model, arguing that off-duty speech should be protected regardless of its content. The state views the comparison as inapposite, drawing a distinction between commentary on public affairs and commercial pornography production.1Inside Higher Ed. Joe Gow Hangs Legal Limbo
Whether the federal court accepts qualified immunity, or lets Gow’s First Amendment claim proceed to a jury, will determine whether the broader question of off-duty expression and tenured faculty discipline gets a merits ruling in this case at all.