Approximately 100 people who were sexually abused by Larry Nassar will receive a settlement of $100 million from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
Nassar was formerly U.S.A. Gymnastics’ team physician as well as director of sports medicine at Michigan State University (MSU). In 2018, he was sentenced to up to 175 years in prison for the sexual abuse of female athletes he treated during his long-standing career. Some of his victims included Olympic gymnasts, and allegations of Nassar’s abuse of patients dated back to 1997.
An investigation found that the FBI knew about the abuse claims against Nassar 15 months before he was arrested in 2016, reports NPR. The lawsuit against the agency claimed that agents based in Indianapolis and Los Angeles were aware of the allegations against the doctor but didn’t act on that information or transfer the case to the Lansing, Michigan field office.
In 2021, FBI Director Christopher Wray apologized to Nassar’s victims at a Senate hearing, reports ESPN.
Lawyers for the victims as well as the DOJ have not commented on the settlement, which has not been paid yet. If finalized, the total amount of liability payouts to Nassar’s victims will be nearly $1 billion, reports USA Today.
In 2018, MSU settled with 332 survivors for $500 million. The school was accused of failing to protect Nassar’s victims by ignoring or dismissing complaints against him. U.S.A. Gymnastics reached a separate settlement with victims for $380 million.
In 2019, the U.S. Department of Education fined MSU $4.5 million, requiring the school to make major changes to its Title IX procedures. At that time, MSU’s Clery Act fine was the largest ever imposed by the Department.
This year, however, MSU’s penalty was dwarfed by the $14 million Clery Act fine against Liberty University for its systemic failure to address sexual abuse in its campus community.
