Survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of a former Ohio State doctor protested outside a school board meeting. (Photo: Nick Evans, Ohio Capital Journal.)
Last Thursday, people who experienced sexual abuse by a former doctor from Ohio State University protested in front of the school’s Board of Trustees meeting.
The university has already settled lawsuits with nearly 300 survivors of Dr. Richard Strauss for $60 million. But hundreds of other survivors have so far refused to settle.
In August, the federal judge overseeing the five remaining lawsuits sent the dispute to mediation.
“It has become apparent,” Justice Michael Watson wrote, “that any victory for the plaintiffs in the litigation may be pyrrhic.”
“The best way for plaintiffs to close this terrible chapter in their lives and for Ohio State to continue to operate as a respected institution of higher education,” he continued, “is through mutual resolution without trial.”
Survivors testified about the case from several high-profile public figures, including Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State during Strauss’s tenure, former athletic director Andy Geiger and two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin, who served as assistant athletic director.
In a recent documentary, former Ohio State wrestlers say U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan knew about Strauss’ molestation
But they have so far failed to bring down Les Wexner, former L Brands CEO, Jeffrey Epstein confidant and perhaps Ohio State’s biggest benefactor.
Wexner’s first term on the board coincided with Strauss’s, and he was board chairman in 1996 when a disciplinary action against the doctor banned him from treating patients in the athletics department and student health services.
However, the doctor remained a full-time faculty member until 1998 and quickly established an off-campus private clinic where he continued to sexually abuse patients.
After retiring, Strauss was granted emeritus status.
Survivors’ protest
Outside the trustees’ meeting, survivors like Stephen Snyder-Hill waved signs reading “Where’s Wexner.”
Board president John Zeiger was once Wexner’s lawyer. His son and law partner Matthew Zeiger currently represents Wexner.
“We think our biggest problem right now is that we think there are a lot of really egregious internal conflicts,” Snyder-Hill said.
“Because Zeiger, his child, represents Wexner, who is on our subpoena list, and his child won’t let him accept the subpoena, so they just avoid the law and he sits on the board.”
Thursday’s meeting was the first they had attended since OSU President Ted Carter took office.
However, Snyder-Hill did not sound confident about his impact on the court-ordered mediation. He pointed Carter’s comments on The Lantern earlier this year regarding another lawsuit.
A school was forced to transfer hundreds of students after mold was found in a high-rise apartment building. However, when asked about the lawsuit related to the incident, Carter said that “most people will assume that we have not reached a settlement.”
Survivors’ frustration is also deepened by the recent hiring of E. Gordon Gee. OSU’s former president was in charge of the school during the disciplinary proceedings against Strauss, and the doctor twice approached Gee directly in hopes of gaining privileges to get students back on campus.
The Gee administration did not allow Strauss to return, but it also did not pursue the case further.
When lawyers working on OSU’s internal investigation spoke to Gee, he could not recall Strauss’ correspondence. Gee, however, said his staff “would have informed him of Strauss’s situation at the time and that he would have “directed them to take care of it.”
“And then Ted Carter calls him his ‘wing man’?” Snyder-Hill asked in disbelief. “I think that’s a poor choice of words right now, especially if he had any knowledge of it at the time, which he did.”
Tom Lisy graduated from Ohio State in 1991. He explained that as a freshman on the wrestling team, Strauss attacked him twice. Like Snyder-Hill, she doesn’t expect mediation to result in an agreement that makes both sides feel whole.
“I don’t think we can feel whole,” he said. “I mean, based on what we went through as students, and based on what we went through as graduates.”
“On the front they had a chance, in a sense, to try to mend fences and that time has passed.” – added Lisy.
He sees the university’s persistence as a misstep in terms of brand protection. The school sought to have cases covered by statutes of limitations dismissed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. But after the justices declined to hear Ohio’s appeal, the cases were allowed to proceed.
That pyrrhic victory Judge Watson spoke of? It’s the school principals’ fault, Lisa said.
“They have already caused damage to the university. They have caused damage to students. They have caused damage to its image,” he said. “When they first learned about Strauss, it was time to do something, but they didn’t.”
Meeting
After an hour outside in the icy, demonstrators entered the rally site, complaining somewhat to school officials, asking them to remove the wooden handles from their signs.
They stood back in silence, holding their signs, while President Carter read his report and the board discussed its agenda. There were no explosions and the whole thing was over in less than half an hour.
Any hopes of speaking directly to President Carter were dashed. He left through the back door. Board Chairman John Zeiger declined to speak to the press.
In a written statement, university spokesman Ben Johnson noted that the school has already reached settlements with more than half of those who reported their claims.
“All male students who filed lawsuits were offered the opportunity to settle,” he wrote. “In addition, the university continues to cover the cost of professional counseling services and other treatment, including reimbursement for past counseling and treatment.”
“The State of Ohio led the effort to investigate and expose Richard Strauss, and we express our deep regret and apology to all those who experienced Strauss’ abuse,” Johnson added.
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