A lawsuit filed revealed that 29 more men are suing Ohio State University over its failure to stop sexual abuse decades ago by team doctor Richard Strauss, who died in 2005 by suicide.
One plaintiff in the federal lawsuit alleges Strauss abused him when he was a 16-year-old high school wrestler whose team competed on Ohio State’s campus. The abuse began in the 1980s during more than 10 medical exams. The plaintiff alleges that the abuse continued during the required medical exams when he was playing football and wrestling for the university. Another wrestler in the lawsuit alleges that Strauss fondled him during more than 50 medical visits.
The newest plaintiffs also include former athletes in baseball, lacrosse, cheerleading, soccer, football, basketball, gymnastics and fencing, as well as patients treated at the student health center, where Strauss also worked before he retired from Ohio State. Most of the plaintiffs are listed anonymously.
More than 400 alumni have raised similar allegations in lawsuits against the university. All of them allege abuse by the doctor throughout his two decades with OSU.
An investigation in 2019 determined that Ohio State had knowledge of Strauss’s repeated sexual abuse of students and failed to act. The investigation revealed that between 1979 and 1989, at least 177 students were abused by Strauss.
The university has publicly apologized for the actions and harm committed by Strauss. In addition, the university already settled with 185 plaintiffs for a total of $47 million. OSU announced an individual settlement program that could help resolve more claims from five of the remaining lawsuits.
