At least 90 young women, including US Olympic athletes, filed federal tort claims against the FBI on Wednesday, demanding more than $1 billion in damages for the bureau's lack of action on sexual assault charges against Larry Nassar, a former USA gymnastics doctor.
According to a report from The Blaze, most of the claimants, which include Olympic star gymnasts Simone Biles, Aly Raisman, and McKayla Maroney, allege that if the FBI had done its job starting in 2015 when charges against Nassar were publicly disclosed, they would not have been abused by him. However, the claimants believe that the agency neglected to intervene over the next year, allowing the predator to harm more women and girls.
Nassar was finally indicted on federal child pornography charges in December 2016, after a wave of state-level sexual assault allegations. The infamous doctor pleaded guilty to his crimes in January 2018 and is now spending a life sentence in prison.
In 2019, a congressional investigation found that the FBI, USA Gymnastics, and the Olympic Committee were aware of the sexual assault claims against Nassar in 2015, but they sat on the information for 421 days, unable to even contact Nassar's employer at the time, Michigan State University.
Four elite American gymnasts testified at a Senate hearing on Wednesday about the abuse they suffered at the hands of former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar and their feelings of betrayal by investigators, including the FBI, as per a report from NPR.
Victims Felt They Were Betrayed
In tears, Olympic gymnast Simone Biles blamed Nasaar and "an entire system" that permitted his abuse to happen, including USA Gymnastics and the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee, which left the victims scarred for life.
Biles said: "The impact of this man's abuse will never be over."
According to McKayla Maroney, Nassar "turned out to be more of a pedophile than he was a doctor."
The claims are being filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act, which allows anyone to seek compensation if they believe they have been affected by the federal government's irresponsible or wrongful activities. The bureau will now have six months to react under the law. Front claimants may face legal lawsuits depending on their response.
Each lawsuit demands a different amount in damages, but their lawyer, John C. Manly, stated that the claims total more than $1 billion.
Neither the FBI nor the Justice Department has replied publicly to the tort claims as of present reporting.
Nassar Abused Hundreds of Young Women
In 2018, more than 150 women spoke at Nassar's sentencing hearing, including a former USA Gymnastics doctor and a sports medicine physician at Michigan State University. Nassar pled guilty to criminal sexual conduct and federal child pornography crimes.
The bulk, though, was not well-known: gymnasts, dancers, volleyball players, students, and young female athletes. They trusted Nassar because of his reputation as a well-connected and brilliant doctor. It also helped them maintain their anonymity.
Ultimately, about 300 women and one male athlete have come forward in the Nassar case, per The Vox.
The Nassar case was part of a greater outpouring of stories of sexual assault and harassment in various settings, from Hollywood to hotel rooms - and those in positions of power who were careless or complicit in trying to protect the offenders.
