A longtime Knoxville psychologist was reprimanded by the state and fined $1,000 last month, after a May incident in which he dragged a child across his carpeted office floor.

Lance Laurence, a psychologist at the Westfield Center, had been providing psychotherapy for the 11-year-old boy for 10 months at the time of the May 13, 2015, incident, the report said.

On that date, it said, the boy "cried continuously throughout the therapy session" and refused to leave Laurence's office at the end of the session. Laurence then tried forcing the boy to stand, the report said, but the boy "resisted." Laurence then "grabbed (the boy's) ankle and drug him across the carpeted floor." The report notes photographs show the boy had carpet burns from the incident.

On Dec. 10, the Tennessee Board of Examiners in Psychology found Laurence violated part of the Tennessee Psychology Practice Act with "unprofessional, dishonorable or unethical conduct" during the incident. The board issued a reprimand on Laurence's license — his first since he received his Tennessee license in 1981 — and ordered him to pay a $1,000 civil penalty, be assessed on his "fitness to safely practice psychology" through a program at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, and complete a continuing education course relevant to the problem. In addition, he had to repay the state all costs associated with prosecuting the case. He can still practice.

"Dr. Laurence is a well-respected member of the psychology profession and has been serving this community for 35 years," said Laurence's attorney, Jennifer Pearson Taylor of London Amburn Attorneys at Law. "He had never received a complaint prior to this unfortunate incident, nor has he received one since."

Taylor said patient privacy prevents Laurence from commenting on the specific incident, but that he "cooperated fully" with the investigation and "looks forward to serving this community for many years to come."

Laurence had until recently been director of the University of Tennessee's Psychological Clinic. UT spokeswoman Lola Alapo said an interim director was hired three years ago, with a plan for Laurence to transition into retiring from the clinic. He did not directly interact with clients, she said. Alapo said Laurence is no longer on the faculty but will still teach for UT's Department of Psychology.

Laurence was Psychologist of the Year for the American Psychological Association in 1998 and for the Tennessee Psychological Association in 1994. In 1998, he received the American Psychological Association's Karl Heiser Lifetime Achievement Award.

He is a past president of the Tennessee Psychological Association and served on the White House Health Advisory Review Committee in 1993-1994.