The Des Moines School Board has dismissed the coach who punished a player for criticizing the football team in a Twitter posting.
The board voted 4-2 on Wednesday night to dismiss Lincoln High coach Tom Mihalovich. Assistant coach Kevin Johnston was also dismissed.
School district investigators say the coaches broke policies for bullying, harassment and corporal punishment. A district report says Mihalovich forced the player to submit to bullying, harassment and excessive conditioning drills.
Nearly two dozen Lincoln team members were in the crowd of more than 100 people who attended the disciplinary session.
Mihalovich said after the vote that he was disappointed "because that's my school, that's my home." He said the report was "full of falsehoods" that disparaged him.
