Ohio State University reached a $100 million settlement with 279 victims of former university doctor Richard Strauss last week.
The settlement comes after the university had previously reached six other settlements with more than 300 more former athletes totaling $61 million. The latest agreement effectively ends much of the eight-year-long legal battle between victims and the university, as the university said all remaining victims but one had agreed to settle.
During a June 3 Board of Trustees meeting, members unanimously voted to approve the settlement resolution, saying 279 of 280 victims had agreed. Ohio State President Ravi Bellamkonda said reaching a final resolution is a critical step for the university.
“The survivors of the Strauss abuse are all Buckeyes, will always be a part of our family and our community, and I continue to believe that,” Bellamkonda said. “We continue to be very grateful to them for their courage in coming forward, and reaching a final resolution is very important to us and is an important step forward.”
Ohio State has been fighting lawsuits in federal court since 2018. The passed resolution allows the Ohio Attorney General and the university’s general counsel to finalize settlements with the plaintiffs.
Strauss sexually abused at least 177 male victims between 1979 and 1996 during his time as a physician for Ohio State’s Athletics Department and at the university’s Student Health Center, according to an independent investigation commissioned by the university.
Strauss retired from Ohio State in 1998 and died by suicide in 2005 at age 67.
Strauss victims have been calling for action from the university for years, a group that includes 30 former Ohio State football players and former Columbus Division of Fire Chief Jeffery Happ.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a motion on behalf of the university May 10 asking to drop 77 Strauss abuse cases. He argued that any claims of abuse before Oct. 21, 1986 should be thrown out due to a congressional law allowing states and universities to be sued in federal court for failing to prevent sexual abuse of students.
Survivors of Strauss have also claimed Ohio Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan knew about the abuse during his time as an Ohio State wrestling coach from 1987 to 1995. Jordan has repeatedly denied knowing about any abuse.
This story is republished from the Ohio Capital Journal under a Creative Commons license. View the original article.
