Insurer denies liability claim from man accused of sexual assault at UI fraternity house

An insurance company is asking a federal judge to comment on its refusal to cover the liability claim of a man accused of sexual assault in a University of Iowa dormitory.

Allied Property and Casualty has filed court papers in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa seeking a declaratory judgment that will determine what coverage, if any, should be provided to Carson Steffen of North Liberty under his family’s insurance policy.

The filing stems from a 2021 lawsuit filed by Makéna Solberg, who identified herself in the petition. She sued Steffen and Jacob Meloan, claiming the two sexually abused her and videotaped the act after she was drunk at her Iowa City fraternity house in 2020.

The suit also named as defendants the UI’s Phi Gamma Delta fraternity group, commonly known as Fiji, and a brother of the fraternity who allegedly helped distribute the video recording to others.

Mediation and out-of-court settlements led to all defendants except Steffen being dismissed from the proceedings.

Steffen has filed a countersuit against Solberg, claiming she defamed him by falsely accusing him of sexual abuse and “hurt his good name.” [and] exposed him to public hatred and contempt.” The hearing in the matter is scheduled for November 5.

In addition to the civil case, Steffen is expected to go to trial in early December on the criminal charge of first-degree harassment, a serious misdemeanor.

According to court documents, this charge is based on an allegation that Steffen shared a photo of Solberg having sex with others via Snapchat on the night of the alleged sexual assault.

According to new court filings from Allied Property and Casualty, the company purchased personal liability insurance for Carson Steffen’s parents, Douglas and Gretchen Steffen, in 2019, and Carson Steffen was insured under that policy.

The company alleges that on August 26, 2024, nearly four years after the alleged sexual assault, Steffen filed a request for personal liability insurance related to Solberg’s claims. Allied said it investigated and then dismissed the lawsuit.

The lawsuit alleges that the policy does not cover damages resulting from injuries “caused by or resulting from an act or omission of a criminal nature committed by an insured…regardless of whether the insured has actually been charged with a crime or.” was convicted.” ”

The policy also states that it does not cover injuries or damages resulting from “sexual harassment, corporal punishment, physical or mental abuse or harassment, including sexual harassment, whether actual, alleged or threatened.”

The company states that it has a legitimate basis to deny the family’s insurance claim “because Steffen has not met all of the conditions precedent for insurance coverage.”

A hearing on the issue has not yet been scheduled. Steffen’s attorneys have not yet filed a response and were not available for comment Monday.

Clark Kauffman is deputy editor of the Iowa Capital Dispatch, where this story first appeared.