The common pattern is that adults simply do not want to understand the horror of child abuse. FBI special agent Ken Lanning noted this in a training manual for police.
There is a worse child abuse scandal that I ask the NYT to investigate and expose. The American Psychological Association published a scientific paper in their journal noting that parental alienation is child psychological abuse and that mental health professionals commonly misdiagnose it, thereby contributing to it. The APA has also published a press release, approved by their council, noting that child psychological abuse has outcomes that are as bad as child sexual abuse. Yet, their official policy at best says they have no position on this child abuse, and at worse, says there is no such thing. Many thousands of parents have written to the APA over the last 2+ years, yet they have taken no action.
This fits into the pattern noted FBI special agent Ken Lanning noted in his training manual for policy ... adults simply do not want to understand the harm to children. The same thing happened at Penn State and at the Catholic Church.
For more information, google the eBook "The APA and the Mental Health Child Abuse Scandal".
3
FBI is not culpable.
The government is not culpable.
Culpability is with the University, and its agents.
Olympics Committee and its agents.
And any other adult who should have been aware.
But not the FBI, and not the government.
The accusers are to be applauded. They give courage to isolated, silent victims.
Those who allowed this by looking the other way should go to jail, not simply lose their jobs.
My aunt repeatedly molested me when I was a little kid. My mother, I am sure, knew but did nothing to stop her sister's attacks. Over 1/3 of child victims are boys, many of them attacked by women.
3
Come now, how does this serial molester of decades, never stopped by Michigan State or the Olympics committees somehow get headlines as the FBI's fault? What will the FBI "guilty of" next, the Lindberg baby kidnapping? This is too long a stretch to blame the FBI.
2
Is this the same FBI that liberals are praising for the "Russia investigation?" Heaven help us.
2
Let's see. Who can I blame today... At some point folks, you have to accept responsibility for yourself. And parents have to ask themselves are they more concerned with their child's welfare... or with their child's success. Time to think.
4
When people come forward with abuse allegations, there are always two different opinions. The first is that they are telling the truth and something needs to be done asap. The second, is people with the school of thought that the victim wants attention, money, revenge for something other than the abuse. This second opinion has always disturbed me but it is quite prevalent. A lot of people feel this way. And it makes me wonder, have they ever been abused or are they one of the lucky few who have never been abused so they pass judgement on others. Or in addition, a prominent doctor with a great reputation would NEVER harm anyone. They are delusional but this is why it drags on for so long sometimes. I don't know how you fix this but I see it over and over.
3
'Amateur' sports is big business and like most big businesses, the bosses don't much prioritize the people at the bottom of their financial pyramid.
2
Professionals are permitted to compete in the Olympics. It’s been this way for more than 25 years.
"Doctors" can be sick, as the Nassar case proves.
4
If there is a dearth of female FBI agents, especially assigned to this case, what is the reasoning?
"Justice, justice you shall pursue!"
2
FBI is a failure in many fronts. Instead of an investigative agency it has become a lazy political tool. Should be disbanded and restructured.
1
First I lost faith in bicycling because of ubiquitous doping. Then football because of an intractable concussion problem. Now the Olympics because of widespread corruption and the abuses described in this article. There is little doubt that the slow pace of the FBI investigation was because they were going after the Olympics.
2
What must have seemed to Nassar wrong and perverse at the beginning eventually became his norm.
It’s what someone once called “the banality of evil.”
2
Hannah Arendt
1
Good luck in prison, "Dr." Nassar. You are going to need it.
2
The FBI being under attack the last year, by a self proclaimed sexual predator has not made their jobs easier. I'd question how this was happening with the parents sometimes in the room, while her was assaulting their daughter.
The FBI had to make sure that they weren't doing anything to blow their case on a technicality.
1
What's more important - protecting innocent minors from sexual abuse or building a case?
3
Regarding what has occurred over the past few weeks and months regarding the issue of Nassar and those who were victimized, it brings light to the areas within the criminal system that are clearly lacking and failing. For an investigation to go on for as long as it did and for those abused victims to be completely shut out and ignored, has proven to be detrimental as it has now uncovered one of the most horrific abuse cases in the history of sport. With the evidence and allegations that were made against him being stacked up over the years of his abuse, for this man to have been allowed the ability to continue working within his field, performing the acts of abuse that he was is completely out of order and is an issue that shouldn't have been taken so lightly.
1
Justice is NOT equal in the USA. Rich, powerful, "connected, "high-status, and intelligent "perpetrators" can delay and sometimes deny justice because they can intimidate, mislead and pay other people off. They can afford to hire top-notch lawyers, public relations firms and private investigators, and often have political or institutional protection. Harvey Weinstein hired former Mossad (Israeli Intelligence) agents working for a private investigation firm to investigate and intimidate women he allegedly molested! Although police Internal Affairs departments usually do a good job of weeding out crooked cops who are pais off, there should also be independent police oversight committees and routine polygraph exams to weed out corruption or cover-ups among high-level police officials. High-level "bureaucrats" routinely "cover up" problems to protect their jobs and their organization, as the Catholic Church hierarchy, Penn State, Hollywood, Silicon Valley, Congress (taxpayer-funded sex scandal "hush money" slush fund), US Olympic sports officials, TV networks, NPR, and everyone else covered up sex abuses for decades.
3
The families of gymnasts are rarely poor. Some are extremely wealthy.
2
So the Michigan State President has resigned, the USA Gymnastics leadership has resigned, but why hasn’t someone from the FBI been held accountable???? This is unbelievable that a year went by without any serious investigation being done. CAN YOU BELEIVE THIS???? How is it that we have a mandatory reporting requirement by teachers, therapists, etc. and yet the FBI can take a year and do nothing?? Something needs to be done and someone needs to be held accountable at the FBI.
4
"For more than a year, an F.B.I. inquiry into allegations that Lawrence G. Nassar, a respected sports doctor, had molested three elite teenage gymnasts followed a plodding pace."
Why "plodding?" Why not "careful?" We are talking about building a solid, indictable case here. That takes time. Yes, there may well have some "foot-dragging," or internal jurisdictional issues, etc. But I seriously doubt that those were the primary reasons for the time it took to bring the case.
It is, of course, sad, even tragic, that others were molested during the time it took to build the case. But I am certain all of these women would not have wanted to FBI to attempt to indict in such a manner that Dr. Nassar would have beaten the charge.
4
Why not dilatory? It certainly was not expeditious.
Textbook example of the rule that, when someone says, "don't tell anyone," that's when you REALLY need to tell someone. Someone you trust, someone in authority, immediately. And, if necessary, many people in authority, again and again.
Why don't people ever seem to learn? Is it because of another rule of human social interactions: Everything gets strange when you bump up against power?
10
Was this a case of federal jurisdiction being blocked because of state's rights? The university should have removed Nasser when the earliest complaints were reported. Michigan State University allowed this criminal behavior to continue.
1
Has it occurred to anyone by now to warn young girls of what's appropriate and what's not, to tell them to walk out, to scream, to tell parents and officials?
Everyone -- parents, officials, coaches -- has just assumed that everything would always be just fine. This is phenomenally absurd. We know what the world is like. We know there are bad people out there who will take advantage.
At the very least, a chaperone should be present at all times.
4
These assaults often happened with a parent in the room. Perhaps inform yourself better.
As the parent of a daughter who recently went to college, I very specifically and thoroughly taught her how not to be raped, because universities are a hunting ground for predators. I did this knowing that if a rapist chose her, my warnings would be useless. It is devastating to consider.
Maybe we could work on the rapists and molesters. If the predators would stop, we could all sleep better.
5
Why were any of these girls permitted alone in an exam room is my question. A regular doctor has a nurse, etc. in the room. I am not surprised it took a year; that is bureaucracy and that is why I had it and big government.
4
It starts with the parents. Who assumes their kid is safe with male coaches, doctors, mentors, and bystanders who have chosen a career focused on young girls? I don't care how much a child wants to do gymnastics; mine could only do it if I were watching like a hawk.
4
We the people and our government agencies are molested everyday by the trump WH, who has come to our rescue.
4
Lesson learned: believe the women...check every story out
6
I think that anytime there is an allegation of sexual abuse of a young girl that the potential abuser be immediately arrested by the FBI.
1
What a horrible story; all those poor girls!
3
What about the 160 mothers/parents who were in the room while this MONSTER defiled them in front of them??
IN THE SAME ROOM!
How about indicting some of these "sports" moms who ignored this unspeakable behavior in favor of their agenda.
I say it's time to hold the ENABLERS accountable...
not just the moms, but the entire system of politics and tenure that CONTINUES to turn a blind eye to this sad abuse.
It's happening every day - especially in JHS and high schools everywhere.
But I'm especially disappointed with the women who ignored their daughters' when they needed them most...
WAKE UP
9
Yet another failure of our FBI, the world's most overrated criminal investigatory organization.
2
The terrible truth is that in American culture, women are less valuable than men. And American men and women buy into this value system of female inferiority. Otherwise how on earth do you explain a situation where the mothers of these girls were willing, under instructions from male US Gymnastics officials, to wait obediently and quietly for the men in charge to do something about it, even as the abuse continued against more young girls. Meanwhile, the male law enforcement establishment took its time to investigate what was obviously a heinous crime against young girls. There was moral failure at so many levels, not least at the leadership levels of all institutions involved (whether led by men or women). There was callous failure to act to protect the victims and stop Nasser in his tracks across all the relevant institutions involved. This cannot happen except in a society that somehow sees women and girls as lesser beings. And the sad part is, women are complicit in their own devaluation.
7
Where are the female olympic doctors? Its time for more women to take their rightful place as Olympic doctors for women.
10
If that girls father would have gotten hold of him a year ago it would have stopped then.
4
I have to wonder whether another factor at work is the abysmal level of US science education.
How is it that so many people, whether the victims, the parents, or agents at the FBI, could've hesitated for a moment before recognizing this self-serving quackery as a transparent mask for sexual assault?
6
Science education? I would have known at a very young age that no one should be doing what he did. In fact, in HS a medical exam did not include penetrating a vagina, unless medically necessary. This was not medically necessary. The little girls were victims; their parents, teachers, coaches et al were enablers.
2
Why did he have the great reputation he did? He was molesting day in and day out. Did no one notice that he was not treating anyone?
4
But no one in the FBI writes an editorial in the NYT about this with the title, "Why I"m Leaving the FBI" over "relentless attacks." Inept & scandalous incompetence in handling the rape of young girls is apparently A-OK.
campbell just leaves when he wants to score political points, & his feelings are hurt (poor widdle guy, suffering 'relentless attacks,' unlike, oh, teachers & cops). And we are supposed to cheer? Honestly, the FBI is looking more & more incompetent, corrupt & narcissistic with every passing day.
4
Let us be clear here. Though there may have been muddying of the pseudo-scientific waters regarding the validity of the penetrative *treatments.* there is absolutely no question at all that touching a patient*s body with ungloved hands is entirely against not just mandated, but essential hygienic protocol.
Any one of those clueless parents ask why Larry Nassar never used gloves?
Sorry. The world always has been and always will be overpopulated with predators. It is the responsibility of caregivers, guardians and individuals themselves--even if young--to keep their eyes open, their questions loud and their voices ready to say *no* or *stop.* This is basic to survival anywhere.
9
It’s hard to believe the thin line between right and wrong is the mere thickness of latex. No wonder it’s impossible to distinguish between the two sometimes.
1
I am so angry, angry, angry on behalf of these young women, and all the others that decided not to come forward for perfectly valid reasons. MSU supporters say this isn't like Penn State, but it's worse.
6
So when does the trial of all these colluders start? Because this article is describing collusion. So we can expect charges will be laid? Am I right? Please someone tell me the colluders are going to face the consequences too.
6
It's an irony that the Russians get banned from the Olympics for cheating and the US gets to participate despite having looked the other way on this. How extensive was the collusion? How extensive does it have to be?
6
How are those two things even remotely related?
"The retired agent emphasized how the sensitivities and difficulties of child-exploitation cases can contribute to the length of investigations. 'You are dealing with victims who sometimes don’t want to be interviewed,' he said. 'It is extremely delicate. And you also have the parents of minors who are sometimes not comfortable with interviews'."
We do our children a disservice when we walk on eggshells around sexual assault. Parents and law enforcement would do much better to treat sexual assault as they would any other crime.
To be sure, if the *child* feels embarrassed about the crime, respect the child's feelings. There's no need to drive a bulldozer. But also be careful not to *suggest* that the child has anything to be feel embarrassed about. Too often there's still a whiff of "oh, dear, now you're damaged goods" in the air. Children are particularly good at sensing such emotional currents, and of course it'll only make the child feel worse.
In addition, it can re-build self-esteem to let the child know they can take action against someone who wronged them, and to prevent a criminal from harming other kids. It's the self-esteem of *agency,* of taking action to stand up for oneself and to make the world a or less evil place.
Last, the bottom line is that these children bear a responsibility to other children who might become future victims. If the reluctance is truly the child's, fine, treat it with respect. But at the same time, the child must
overcome it.
3
No. Victims NEVER bear a responsibility to prevent future crime. Only the criminal is accountable for future crime.
Testimony is not inhibited by discomfort. It is inhibited by soul-shattering trauma that may persist throughout the victim's life. It can manifest in PTSD, body dysmorphia, clinical depression, suicidal ideation,self-harm, feelings of worthlessness, etc.
This well-meant (I hope) comment is totally and completely misguided. You ask too much of a victim whose first responsibility is to survive, with his or her psyche as intact as possible.
5
Not a great time to be piling on the FBI, is it?
2
and where were all the adults who were actually responsible for these children? The FBI is not in the business of this kind of protection
4
Why were we warned by James Comey That Hillary was being investigated but were not warned that Larry Nasser was being investigated?
13
What's the big picture here? It isn't that a doctor did all this terrible prime. It isn't that the gymnastics committee didn't stop it. It's not that the nation's law enforcement agencies failed to protect these kids. The big picture is the utter lack of women's voice in the nation's politics. American women are so accustomed to being second class citizens that it doesn't occur to them that they have to be in charge of leading this nation. They themselves don't feel entitled to equal rights that they allowed someone who demonized women so much to head the nation's government. The big picture here is that American women need to wake up and start taking responsibility in defending their rights. When the nation's legislature is the boy's club, when the top guy brags about groping women by their private part, do not expect that protecting your body to be priority for the nation's law enforcement. Women need to wake up and draw the red line in the nation's politics, at all levels of government.
6
I have never heard the words "mandated reporter." In 1999, my 8 year old daughter told me "something happened at school today" when I picked her up. During a "good touch bad touch" classroom presentation, several girls had raised their hands and reported that the martial arts instructor had been walking into the dressing room where they changed, looking down their tops and kissing them on the cheek. All his alleged victims were scholarship students. This information spread quickly through the school, I presume, since the headmaster sent an email out that Friday saying that "Master Ernie's expression of affection was misinterpreted by several of the girls, but in light of this confusion he has moved on to another employment opportunity." He added that anyone with questions should come to his office Saturday morning. A female board member, retired from a high-powered law firm, called me to say that, "in the district of columbia, if there is no penetration, there is no sexual assault." We left the school that summer, and they sued us for the tuition since we notified them one day past the deadline. Cardinal Law's sins came to light the same week their attorneys notified us of the suit. The Post editorialized that schools too were guilty "of passing along their offenders." We never heard from the school or their lawyers again. I am still haunted by this story and the fact that I did nothing. Tell me, aren't we all "mandated reporters"?
16
several of the (female) trainers who told the girls to shut up are still working at Michigan state, according to other published reports. please follow up.
15
- “I didn’t realize what he was doing was wrong.”
- "He was like, ‘Is this O.K.?’ and I was like, ‘I don’t know.’”
-“I knew that he had helped my mom, so I had to persuade myself into thinking that he also helped me. But I wasn’t really sure.”
Incredible that today's children can still not *know.*
Yes, 90% of the blame goes to the predator. Obviously, the FBI, USA Gymnastics, etc. deserve the bulk of the remaining blame -- that's the point of the article.
But new predators are born every day, and they get to go free until they commit a crime, & are caught, tried & convicted. So parents ALSO are to blame if they fail to teach their children the basics of what constitutes inappropriate touching, and what to do if someone even attempts it.
Girls in particular should never have the slightest uncertainty about vaginal penetration. Unless there's a specific need (e.g., the girl has a gynecological condition, or is undergoing an annual pelvic exam (either a PAP/cervical exam using a speculum or manual palpation of the ovaries with gloves)), no doctor should ever subject them to it. Analogous rules for anal penetration.
Parents also need to teach their children, especially girls, to stand up to authority, and not to be overly impressed with celebrity or power. Parents need to instill confidence. The courage of one's convictions. Trust in one's own perceptions.
Also incredible that these girls could've felt shame & dread without knowing it it meant "TELL YOUR PARENTS."
8
This all sits squarely on the heads of US Gymnastics and Michigan State, and you don't have to look any further than the money to figure out why the former told parents "not to talk about it' and the latter allowed it to stand when an investigation determined that a complainant, one of their own students, "didn't know the difference between a medical procedure and sexual assault". (That's from an NPR story, I believe).
When it comes to money and power this country's institutions seem to have no bottom, as to how low they will go, or allow things to devolve, in pursuit of it. None. Please don't think that just replacing university presidents or boards or whomever is actually going to fix this; we have a problem in this country, and it's called greed and megalomania. The abuses, sexual and otherwise, will continue until we've ALL had enough of this and stand up to stop it.
5
Wait, wait, are you undermining law enforcement?
2
Who is undermining the FBI now?
3
Why are so many men coaching girls' gymnastics? Aren't men's and women's gymnastics different? Presumably, most men haven't competed in the women's field. Shouldn't the overwhelming number of male coaches in the sport be a red flag?
16
I'd like more reporting and discussion on potential solutions to the problems. Over and over we become outraged over one thing or another - the actions/perpetrators, who does/doesn't tell the story or report it, the investigators, the cover-up... I'm not sure how much more outrage and pointing fingers I can stand. Without discussing prevention and/or reduction of all of these issues, it ends up being a lot of noise that goes nowhere and makes it worse for the victims. Punishment is the tail end and doesn't solve the problems. Wouldn't it be better if it never got that far - if girls and women didn't have to suffer through something in the first place?
We need to do a heck of a lot more as a society, as parents, as teachers, as doctors, as legal authorities to work together in order to prevent, stop, or at least limit the abuse.
5
Sexual abuse is hard to prove, particularly by a doctor, particularly when the abuse happened without resistance of the victims or their parents who were often in the room.
.
The FBI and federal prosecutors feel that they need to hit the target every time, or face intense criticism for persecuting the innocent.
.
Our legal system is designed to give the benefit of the doubt to the accused. That makes it a slow system.
.
It's the FBI's job to arrest and successfully prosecute criminals. They are only one of many organizations who should be protecting our children, but they are the only ones who can put him away forever. So they made very sure that they would, and they did. Protecting the children in the short term could and should have been done by many others.
2
And notice how the lid wasn't publicly blown on Nassar until AFTER the Olympics, AFTER the U.S. team scooped up the gold medals.
Maybe the FBI was ordered not to find anything to bring charges against until after the, uh, never mind.
4
I believe we owe the survivors our effort to confront sexual abuse. I think one way to move forward from this is to listen and understand each other when there is a report on sexual abuse. Most importantly, we should look after each other and speak up when something is wrong.
1
The FBI blew the Boston Marathon bombers warnings. They blew the 20th hijacker warnings. The NY office worked to defeat Hillary Clinton with leaks and foot-dragging just because Devin Nunes and Don Trump are currently mad at them should not cause anyone to give them unqualified support. J. Edgar Hoover ran the FBI like a protection racket and falsely harassed civil rights workers and student anti-war activists. The FBI needs close, non-partisan supervision.
9
It’s funny how hindsight leads to insight. Aha, we just need to find the villains. It’s the FBI, the police, the school, the parents, the girls, the gymnastics association, the Olympic committee, the enablers, the system.
This is an old story (starring power and money) but with a different cast and enough variation in the plot line so that we feel a heightened sense of indignity. It’s difficult to get worked up over the same old same old, isn’t it. Eventually, we will greet similar stories with a shrug. Repeats and sequels just don’t cut it.
I was kidding. Hindsight, sadly, seems to bring little insight. Lots of judgement though.
"All the while, Dr. Nassar continued his uncommon treatment techniques on young patients."
It would have been helpful if these NYT reporters had investigated why there was a delay. The delay was caused by the previous 2014 Title IV investigation's exoneration of Dr. Nassar DO. The procedure was not "uncommon". Rather, the "deep pelvic dysfunction" diagnosis, treatment and preventive measures is a sub portion of the larger category of manual medicine, foundational to Osteopathy. The Title IV investigation interviewed other Doctors of Osteopathy (DO), staff members in the MSU Sports Medicine program, the Dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine plus Phillip Greenman's textbook "Principles of Manuel Medicine" also written at MSU's College of Osteopathic Medicine. "Pelvic Floor Dysfunction, although not having any scientific basis does have much anecdotal testimony as to its validity. The people who complained the procedures was sexual abuse were characterized as not understanding the "nuances" of the "medical" treatment. Hence, Larry Nassar could go back to doing what he had been doing.
The FBI was faced with the very real issue of "intent". Larry Nassar claimed that his intent was medical and the girls/ women believed his intent was his own sexual gratification. If the FBI had charged Larry Nassar first with sexual abuse, the likely outcome would be similar to 2014 exoneration. Possession of child pornography was the Federal offense that allowed subsequent confessions.
5
RiHo08
Don't you mean "Principles of Manual Medicine? If not, who is this "Manuel Medicine" guy?
Manual=\=Manuel, a distant relative
BTW. The FBI was already onto Larry Nassar, they just didn't have any evidence against him that was not sexual abuse. Don't believe for one moment that the reason for Larry Nassar now spending his life in prison was because of a "late" garbage truck pickup of his trash that just so happened to be the very day Larry Nassar discarded his hard drives with 37,000 pieces of child pornography. The FBI had been going through his garbage for a long time and persistence paid off. The idea is: if this guy is a pervert, he is likely to be into other perverted activities and child pornography is the most likely. The FBI were doing there job to get Nassar behind bars, its just that there was precious little to go on until the finding of the hard drives. The FBI may have entered illegally his house and found the child pornography but couldn't get a warrant for a search as he had been "exonerated" already. So they pressured him by other means so that he would do something to incriminate himself, which he did.
1
Wait — so “Conservatives” are in an uproar about this, but hey seem oblivious to systemic police brutality? Really? Really?
2
A congressional House committee (Nunes?) ought to investigate the tardiness of our FBI.
1
As someone raped at 14, I take for a starting point that all male coaches that work with young girls are predators or worse. Happy to be surprised otherwise, but that's my truthful starting point.
7
The FBI, VA, FDA all move at a glacial pace, compared to civilian institutions. And I'm a liberal.
3
1. The key witnesses were young girls. Getting women to testify about abuse is difficult. Lining up 10 year olds to make this case was surely a monumental task. Remember that many of the older victims didn't come out until after Nassar was charged.
2. The FBI was investigating a prestigious and innovative doctor purporting to be administering cutting edge treatment. It was not enough to prove that this was not accepted medical practice. It had to be proven that it was criminal. Hypnosis and chiropractics on young girls, when they were first used, could well have been abusive. Common sense is not enough when you're trying to prove a crime. The FBI had to be certain.
3. The sheer number of victims would have delayed the investigation. No doubt at the beginning, some of the victims were loyal to Nassar. The FBI had to neutralize that.
4. This case was not a no brainer, keep in mind that there were some 300 parents, few of whom came forward.
5. Until the case was made, the FBI could not make public statements indicating Nassar was a serial abuser. If they were wrong, they could have been sued for millions by Nassar's attorneys. And Nasser's attorneys were the best that money could buy.
6. There were lots of adults tied to the gymnasts. Any could have blown the horn. The FBI made a thorough case. I don't blame them for not disclosing their evidence early. I believe it could have compromised one of their most important investigations.
5
Come on, NYT! Is the FBI our great defense against evil or just another federal agency that can't function? I supposed it depends on whether Trump is in the mix. You guys really don't make any sense...
7
The FBI and BJS estimate that nationwide 32% of sex crimes are reported to police and about 37% of that 32% (or about 12% in total) resulted in an arrest.
That looks pretty dismal till you look at the stats for robbery, larceny, auto theft, and burglary, which, by and large, are worse.
What we're seeing about failure to report or take seriously in timely fashion re multiple sources re sexual abuse is tip of the iceberg. Don't we need to personalize? Ask yourself what YOUR reaction would be if it happened to you or your children or grandchildren. Do not assume that could not happen! But shouldn't we also ask WHY? Power & control coupled with a sense of entitlement and pervasive paternalism are often part of the cause. That applies some even to institutions, who may also be misguidedly thinking remaining quiet aids self preservation. All that & shame, indoctrination, ETC. scare victims into silence. "Never again" is a common reaction to the tangled web of failure to investigate Nassar's victims. But if our goal is prevention, don't we HAVE to consider the Big Picture- all the major causes of the vicious circle? How about studies proving high cycling rates of abusive behavior? Consider- a)"Spotlight"- defrocked priest said-"I fondled but never hurt since didn't rape since that was done to me as a child. I know how much that hurts," b) media, gov't, organizations... have been ignoring documentation that over 1 million kids past 2 decades have been ordered by family courts into custody/visits with abusive parent (usually dad), AND July 24, 2017 bill before Congress, H.Con.Res.72, safety 1st of kids of divorce if abuse alleged (ex- DV expert must interview each family member 1st separately. Required in England.) Connect dots to MeToo and power of compounding!
1
Where were state physician licensing officials in all this? It seems that an investigation by state licensing officials might have put him out of business sooner given the lower standard of proof needed for civil administrative action.
3
A former FBI investigator gave advice on evaluating truthfulness that I have used for many decades - even in the face of irrefutable evidence, most people will believe whatever it is they NEED to believe to protect themselves and their personal and professional interests including the organizations to which they belong. That's what happened here; everyone was looking for an easy way out.
This attitude runs rampant in almost every American institution from the NCAA to the FBI to political parties.
4
I thought criminal enforcement meant stopping criminals, not standing by while crimes happen. The FBI certainly appears to be an organization that needs a major revamping and new leadership. Comey was the tip of the iceberg.
3
I can't believe the parents of these innocent young women never questioned the treatments or asked why a female medical associate wasn't present during exams and treatments. Surely the athletes conveyed their discomfort and particulars to parents over the course of years of - presumably unhelpful - "treatment."
3
Sadly the parents’ trust of the numerous institutions was unfortunately unfounded. They trusted the coaches, the schools and universities, the medical profession itself (licensed physician with global reputation) and their children - some so very young - didn’t have the words to express their trauma. When the parents became aware they were told to stay silent so as to protect the gathering of legal evidence. Thankfully the judge in the case is a force for all that should have gone down by all adults from the very start. So sorry for all these wonderful athletes.
4
Often, the parents were in the room. Some of the girls were college athletes in their early 20's. The question is: how did he get started in field anyway.
This article only portrays a snippet of the reality.
Read "Out of Balance" IndyStar > don't shame the victims !!!
Look into Twistars and John Geddert & the forerunner gym. Nassar was volunteering as much as 20hr/wk in the early 90's, ingratiating himself w/ a hard charging entrepreneur. Free advertising, no payroll taxes ... the legend grows . Kathy Klages worked at the same gym before slinking her way into MSU as Head Gymnastics Coach. Think about it _ they're joined at the hip from the old days ... Nas_man becomes fake massage therapist, bogus Dr. @ MSU. Guess who's head coach USAG --- Geddert.
People are deceived by the business model. More little girls / aspiring gymnasts than fake Dr.s & fake coaches. supply & demand.
Jurisdiction seems to be a big part of the problem. The FBI is perceived as the premier law enforcement agency but its focus is on violations of federal law. Congress should pass a statute that states clearly that the FBI is authorized to coordinate investigations whenever a subject is involved in crimes in multiple different states.
No matter how many times bad people perpetrate crimes, it dos not excuse the people who are responsible for protecting the victims.
The FBI has been so preoccupied with politics, they pushed investigations like the one on Nasser down to the bottom.
FBI Agents like Peter Strzok and his Mistress sent so many text messages outlining their plans to stop the will of the people, they did not have time to stop the will of a monster like Dr. Nasser.
The FBI needs to stop tying to influence elections because they think they know who should President. Let the people decide who should be President, and focus on stopping the real criminals like Dr. Nasser from destroying young lives.
5
The FBI does deserve criticism here. It did not investigate the allegations against Nassar nearly fast enough -- especially given the large number of athletes he was treating. Had they interviewed even two victims, which could have happened within a week's time, they would have had enough corroboration to at least prevent him from assaulting additional girls and women. Had this been a case of an alleged campus sexual assault, the accused student would have been confronted by school authorities immediately. Why wasn't Nassar? Yes, law enforcement authorities have a duty to protect the rights of the accused. But that doesn't mean allowing him to continue to commit despicable crimes for months while an investigation fumbles along.
3
Based on the types of rules we have here in Germany the FBI did a good a careful job.
I don't understand why this group of some of the best young athletes in the world didn't have one of the best orthopedic pediatric specialists in the development of young girls caring for them, instead of this diabolical quack. Their accomplishments in competition are nothing short of amazing, considering the duress under which they pursued their sport. Sadly, perhaps some of these young athletes were unable to perform to their full potential.
It's a tough time for the FBI right now, we should demand a full investigation and disclosure of how this happened. Perhaps a close look at their actions or lack thereof, and other law enforcement as well, will require certain people to be reassigned or asked to resign, or held accountable in other ways. This is not the time for anybody to get a pass.
8
If this had happened in an elementary school or high school Nasser would have been pulled immediately pending investigation. The FBI appears to have taken an almost prurient approach in its investigation, which itself sends a clear message to all girls and women that in our system even when a preponderance of evidence is already available, the male attacker/abuser's future professional (economic) prospects are more important than their health and their own ability to earn their own living and succeed financially.
3
As a father of two daughters, one an athlete, another a competition dancer, I have kept a keen eye on every coach, doctor, mentor, and peripheral individuals involved in their pursuits. I'm not looking for any kudos, or medals, for being a suspicious, vigilant and attentive parent, but the reaction I got from my daughters when this story broke was, "omg, what would you have done if this happened to us?" My silence spoke volumes, and my response was, "I would have believed you and done anything necessary to make it right."
6
Why didn't FBI agents immediately report the child assault allegations to the two agencies legally-mandated to DO something, and fast, without having to wait for a full investigation?
1) They should have called in child-welfare authorities, who are required by law to swiftly respond, usually within hours, to serious child abuse reports, sending investigators to also speak to alleged victims and can block alleged predators' access to children.
2) Separately, state medical boards have jurisdiction over medical licenses and can suspend that of an alleged mal-practitioner or limit who he or she can treat -- or how. Their experts would quickly know if Nasser's "treatments" were legitimate.
This garbage about FBI jurisdictions is nonsensical pretense. Who would possibly buy it? Their duties to potential victims extend far beyond their own incomprehensibly do-nothing bureau.
8
it's ok to implicate the fbi...as the top law enforcement agency in the country its hiding behind jurisdictional overlap in this multi-state case of abuse is pathetic and those in responsible leadership positions ought to be held to account, the way, say, the navy deals with command failure, forthwith, no excuses no blather.
clearly their pursuit/investigaion lacked energy and urgency...(no phone call for 11 months?)
blame is not the issue here, due diligence is...we had the list of 9/11 hijackers (under indifferent surveillance) on a desk in ohio, then we got the same old interagency-clutter excuse...
we've got a headquarters building in washington named after one of the most ruthless abusers of
the constitution in our history.
our agencies are indeed made of up of ranks and files of good people with good intentions but that's no excuse for slack oversight, a dangerous form of complacency which, as we see now has led us to institutions now too powerful to criticise without risking a toxic dose of "how dare you!" high dudgeon.
for every field agent of every agency there is a bureaucrat sitting at a desk with an overstuffed "in" box, bet on it.
we owe our best effort to those who risk their lives in service, investigating and enforcing, they deserve our keenest, most attentive, full-time oversight.
1
Yes, women and girls need to be believed. Part of the problem here was that this man was a world renowned physician for gymnasts. His patients won gold medals at the Olympics. Law enforcement hears a couple of complaints of sexual abuse from teenage girls. Physicians at Michigan State University DID review some allegations against Nassar and, no doubt intimidated by his world class reputation, ordered that he wear gloves and that he have a 3d person in the room when treating a patient. (Restrictions he ignored with no consequence.) In 2004 a victim and her mother complained to the Meridian Township police in Michigan about Nassar's sexual assaults. Nassar talked to the police and showed them a lengthy power point presentation on his "treatment" methods. Meridian Township police dropped the inquiry, never taking it up with the local prosecutor. Nassar bamboozled many law enforcement personnel, not just the FBI. And what was Nassar himself thinking? I can only speculate that he was drinking his own kool-aid, thinking this is fun for me and obviously I'm assisting these young athletes to reach the highest pinnacle of their sport, so my methods are obviously premier. That "defense" fell apart when his own defense team could not find another physician to endorse the abuse Nassar inflicted. Law enforcement has a full plate, but they need to consult with experts in the medical field to sort out these types of cases. Here's hoping many will learn from this horrible debacle.
8
Unconscionable that athletes and their parents weren't at least warned.
3
Um, the Catholic Church abuse going back decades and centuries, and very much covered up presently. The FBI and Justice in general have not done their most basic jobs in protecting the public. Insult adds to injuries that should never occur.
3
This article makes me furious- that these children had to endure this molestation while the local coaches, the police and even the FBI stood by and did nothing to stop it. That is until a newspaper forced them to.
What could they possible be thinking? This is not 1 child but hundreds of them.
7
Are there no gymnastics coaches who are women?
If not. There should be.
3
Yes of course there are. Olympian Laurie Hernandez was coached by a woman. The issue is that men are generally better spotters, because they are taller, heavier, and stronger. That's just biology. Catching a gymnast mid-trick can literally keep them from breaking their neck and getting killed.
2
FBI is really having a BAD week. Having spied on a Presidential Candidate AND letting this happen. Anyone standing up for these people are delusional. Institutional FAIL!
1
Where was the Medical Board? Didn't anyone think to report him to the Medical Board. That's the next place to look for evidence of a cover-up.
1
Why was the FBI responsiple for not warning people? There were A LOT of people who knew what was going on they didn't say a word. Do you wait for the FBI to tell your dog not to bite the mailman?
1
I loved yesterday's on-line front page layout. On the left, the evil being done to the FBI who are our friends and should be allowed to grow up into J Edgar Hoover's ideal snooper institution to protect us from Martin Luther King. Tragic. Next door on the page, in the centre piece, it turns out our good friends at the FBI allowed the abuse of young girl athletes to continue for years because they couldn't be bothered. Pathetic.
3
So you don't put a hidden camera in the room and see for yourself? You can't get a warrant for that? Amazing.
2
The FBI had no problem telling the American public that HRC was under investigation but failed to mention that Trump was as well. Then we find that they also, horrifically, failed to inform American gymnasts that their doctor was a suspected pedophile. What this looks like to me is an organization that tends to disregard women's voices in general. They have a lot to answer for, and none of it has anything to do with the politicized and ridiculous memo.
2
Is it fair to say the FBI proved more interested in collecting and compiling a phony dossier against a presidential candidate than collecting and compiling physical evidence necessary to recommend criminal charges be filed against a serial sexual abuser!
Sad to thin the FBI's precious resources are better spend sabotaging a presidential candidate's bid for office than protecting our young from psychosexual abusers!!!
2
Both DOs and MDs are fully licensed physicians; same training with the exception being that DOs get ADDITIONAL TRAINING in OMT—Osteopathic Manipulative Training. People—please try to really KNOW what you are talking about!!!
1
Believe what you want.
Admission standards for MD allopathic medical schools are much higher.
In other words, the majority of the folks going to DO schools are those who could not get into an American or Canadian MD medical school.
Herbert: What I wrote is FACTUAL—not my belief! What’s more, many fine MD’s went to med schools that were not top tier. Not everyone goes to Harvard or Yale! And the residency training for MDs and DOs is identical—told to me by a UCSF (very, VERY fine school) medical grad!
Sadly enough the well being of these youngsters was less important than their performing well enough to win medals and competitions. Things have not changed since I was child over 50 years ago. Some of these children and teens DID complain, did speak up, and how were they treated? Like liars. Or they tried to convince themselves that something was wrong with them because others who were further ahead of them in training accepted Nassar's "treatments".
I understand that the accused has rights. I further understand that there have been times when false accusations have been made and innocent people hurt. But what I do not understand is why no one ever seems to have checked with these children to see that they were being treated properly. Why is it that patients or the most vulnerable among us are hardly ever asked how WE feel about how we're treated, if we think we're being treated properly, or if anything is wrong? The real miracle is that it was ever reported and that was only because someone overheard something and said something.
Life has enough challenges in it without people like Nassar complicating it.
3
To bad the perp wasn't named Trump. The FBI would have gone sleepless, no stone would have been unturned, the railways would have had to make way.
1
Trump has molested women by his own admission and according to testimony of victims. He has been accused of rape by three separate women — Jill Harth, Ivana, and someone who had been a 13-year-old attendee of a Jeffrey Epstein party who filed suit, then dropped it in Nov. 2016 after threats to her life. You really want to go there? See Newsweek article "When Has Trump Been Accused of Rape or Attempted Rape..." (Nov. 16, 2017)
7
Let‘s see.
In this case the FBI was no good.
In the Trump case the FBI was good.
3
This guy isn't smart enough to pull something this big for this long all by himself. These kids aren't dumb and they certainly knew they were being violated. MSU and Gymnastics USA had to have been involved AND, the big question in my mind is, where were the hundreds of parents? Nasser is only the visible sign of infection. A scalpel is needed here, not just an antibiotic.
2
I am continually amazed to read the intense emphasis in such articles on one child molester. The theme of these articles is that even though allegations against Nasser are now largely irrelevant, given the long prison term he is sentenced to, stopping or interrupting abuse promptly should be our focus. The accompanying NYT video by Neeti Upadhye points out that complaints have been filed against 54 coaches in womens gymnastics. This allegation seems like an appropriate first task for the MeToo movement. Intervening quickly to protect young gymnasts is clearly important, although this also brings up issues of the rights of the accused. It recalls the horror of identifying Nazi collaborators in the wake of WWII, which was well captured in the film the "Sorrow and the Pity", 1969. Collaborators were denying involvement and escaping to South America prompting urgency. At the same time many accusations took on the flavor of settling personal grudges by making false accusations. Sorting through USA Gymnastics to protect athletes, but also insure the rights of the accused is difficult, desperately needed, and requires a thoughtful approach, something that may be difficult in these sensationalist times.
2
Interesting. When I was working in Russia during the window that Putin took on the oligarchs and appropriated their funds in many instances, the same sort of articles ran non-stop in the background.
Now let's see what else is bad in America today....
This reminds me of the Catholic church abuses.
1
There were countless failures by adults that helped this monster continue for 20+ years - Mich State, USOC, US Gymnastics, local police. Is this just dump on the FBI week?
2
So, I guess we can conclude that the FBI is lame.
1
The Federal Bureau of Incompetence. Inspector Clouseau would have done better.
2
Does this mean Trump is right about the FBI? Does it need a full house cleaning?
3
What DO the FBI do well?
The FBI is a Pillar of society and is beyond reproach just ask any Dem (see next article). They took so long because they were busy looking for Russians.
4
What a true horror story this is. And thank goodness for the Indianapolis Star, finally putting this monster in the daylight and out of business.
The pain created here, past, present, and future, is too much to imagine. If you pray, please pray that these women and their families can eventually find some measure of relief, however small.
As for Michigan State, well this is eerily similar to the scandal in the Catholic Church. The crimes though are the same, and people including Nassar need to be punished for the severe damage they have wreaked on so many innocent people.
A horror story that is literally beyond imagination. Enjoy your time in Gen Pop Dr. Nassar. They’re waiting for you.
6
Whoever was heading the FBI at the time needs to answer these serious charges and allegations. Disgraceful and sad.
1
James Comey.
The entire management of U.S.A. Gymnastics is complicit in the abuse of these girls. Maggie Nichols' mother was admonished to keep quiet, then an FBI agent told her she could talk to anyone she wanted. Meanwhile authorities are deciding if Nassar's hideous "treatments" are legitimate. And he was in possession of child pornography. Imagine if this had been an HMO--he would have been out in a sec. This is not the first time one of the "feeder" organizations for the Olympics has been shown to be corrupt. I feel so sorry for these girls and their families.
8
Sounds like we need to really look into the level of bureaucracy that has crept into the US government (and local county/city/state) to identify the source of inefficiencies. This is not isolated to a creepy, sick doctor.
1
No athletic bodies. No campus officials. No bosses. From now on, when a sexual assault crime is committed, go straight to the police.
7
I thought only Republicans criticized the FBI.
Maybe the Nunes Memo is not false.
3
Part of the blame for the shameful, abusive and criminal conduct of Nassar and other throughout the sports industry - such as Jerry Sandusky at Penn State - is our very culture that raises competition, winning and "excellence" in any sport above all else. This afforded most of these "groomers" a free pass. All of this is compounded by an insatiable media that loves to hype a "winners". Think of it, while not impugning her ability or implying that she was abused, Mary Lou Retton was only 16 when she won gold in 1984!
The concepts that should be driving involvement in sports, especially for those still in school, are team work and character building. Yet, those have become subordinated to money and "glory" once the Olympics and the NCAA get involved. (I'm excluding professional sports since at that point its a job and on a different level.)
We, as consumers, are complicit in allowing these sports mills - be it baseball, football, basketball, track or gymnastics - to develop in to breeding grounds of abuse, those of a sexual nature, while the most heinous, being a relatively minor aspect.
Parents, teachers, school administrators and we as a community should really re-think our priorities when it comes to "amateur" sports.
3
Yep. In fact, I'm not even sure that these kids and their pants could even TELL what was abusive any more, given how much they'd paid, sacrificed, and tolerated by way of pain to get to this level of their sport.
We take hundreds of thousands of kids, every year, run them through training regimes that we KNOW will result in a few deaths, hundreds of serious injuries, and cripes knows how much brain damage every year. And while we do it, we jack around with their education and their schools and their friendships and their families.
We do this, it seems, to get a precious few who can then be fed into the hoppers of college basketball and football, not to mention the NCAA and suchlike. Then we amp up the demands and the training and the injuries, while administrators rake in millions from alumni, advertising, and shoe companies.
And then we feed the very few geniuses who get through into the hoppers at the NFL, the NBA, and the travesty that the Olympics have become.
And then we wonder why this sort of thing happens.
3
enough already. this is a horrible story that came to an end last week. please don't belabor the issue. the guy's in jail for life, end of story.
2
Children do not lie to get themselves IN to trouble. As a former law enforcement officer who supervised male sex offenders on parole, I also have a ray of dark hope. Unless he is incarcerated in a segregated population for child molesters, he will meet his demise in prison. There really is honor among thieves.
5
What comes to my mind is the importance of sex education classes. Sheltering our youth from the realities of life, sex & their bodies does no good. It just allows predators to take advantage of naive young girls.
Maybe I am too cynical, but could objections to sex education be related to an effort to keep young women ignorant so they won't object?
5
I'm not part of any witch hunt because I believe that without due process, we undermine our democracy - but Penny should be jailed:
"Weeks of silence passed, Gina Nichols said, interrupted occasionally by admonitions from Mr. Penny to keep quiet about the matter..."
Gina Nichols is a NURSE and he forced her to stay quiet when clearly she is trained in what's medically allowable?!?
This is by far the sickest thing I've read about this case.
How would Mr. Penny feel if HE were probed and hurt and violated while others took their time shutting this sick monster down?!? We're not talking about needing to catch someone in the act for a drug deal where money needs to change hands - there was already ample proof that this so-called doctor was a criminal. Law enforcement is supposed to serve and PROTECT.
5
I think this story is a bit overdone and manipulative. The way the story is structured, the Times assigns the FBI a place on the blame chain. I think it's overdone. The story's structure manipulates FBI's explanations of its conduct by sprinkling them throughout victims' accounts, rather than detailing in one place what the bureau did or did not do and why. As a result, the story does not examine in one place or at any serious length what the Bureau confronted. Unexplained in the story is that when sexual abuse is reported, the feds usually defer to local authorities. See https://www.justice.gov/criminal-ceos/citizens-guide-us-federal-law-chil.... Sexual abuses of minors, per se, are not federal crimes. A crime? Yes. A federal crime? The story mentions -- but does not detail -- questions the FBI faced about whether his was a legitimate medical procedure. The best description of the procedure I've found in the news is this: http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2017/02/what_was_portrayed_as_medica.... Hindsight suggests this was sexual abuse, not medical manipulation. Certainly, it looks disgusting. That said, Nassar must have been so certain of its medical validity that he made videos showing what he did and how. The situation with the FBI was far more complex than the Times discloses. The problem, for me, is that the Times knew this and manipulated readers anyway.
3
I'd like to think I'm evolved, but I have to say, I wish that the father of a victim who lunged at the monster had been allowed 2 minutes alone with him.
6
"For more than a year, an F.B.I. inquiry into allegations that Lawrence G. Nassar, a respected sports doctor, had molested three elite teenage gymnasts followed a plodding pace."
You can't really fault the FBI, can you. Its all a matter of resources and priorities. Political fish were left to fry and they would spoil if not baked.
The same thing happened with Sandusky, with male athletes, and an abuser who was not a doctor. It unfolded for years, with people suspecting, but, when it came down to it, no one taking action until far too late. This included many suspicious, even knowing parents and certainly angry victims.
The Olympic Committee along with professional sports unions, clubs and leagues, universities, alumni organizations and other institutions have a tendency to look where their bread is buttered not how well the cows who provide the milk are cared for.
As a physician who has treated patients for eating disorders - a whole sub-category of these are young women in ballet and gymnastics. There is an obvious and visible conflict here between natural human development curves and the aesthetics along with "judgment criteria" imposed by these "sports" as well as "figure skating, synchronized swimming, and even 'equestrian dressage' - that are arguably sexist, demeaning to women, and in denial of most body types upon reaching adult maturity. You might find some of your pedophilia in the soft underbelly of notions of beauty, performance and "10" - Perfection - the criteria that certain notables, including our notorious president publicly impose on all women with the acquiescent approval and political support of enough voters to have gotten him elected - whether with Russian (gymnast loving) support, or not.
13
People forget that in Pennsylvania the attorney general, Tom Corbett, who ultimately became governor had reports that Sandusky was abusing minor boys because a few boys and their mothers had come forward but he didn't act because they wanted to gather more evidence of Sandusky's criminality. Meantime, Sandusky continued to molest boys -- so this isn't a case of girls not being listened to so much as law enforcement wanting to be certain they have enough evidence otherwise the criminal walks away which is what occurred in 1998 when Sandusky was investigated for possibly being a pedophile and ultimately the DA didn't prosecute him.
An alternate headline could have been "FBI's rush to jail Nassar results in bungled case and acquital at trial." Anyone with experience in investigating sexual abuse knows that even a case with a single victim can be very complex. This involved hundreds of victims across multiple jurisdictions. A year to build a case and get a conviction at trial resulting in the perp rotting in a cell for the rest of his life is completely reasonable. The FBI did their job and did it well.
1
Some will say that this adds to the evidence that Trump was right, the FBI are incompetent. However, that is a fallacy, much like the proposition that the Nunes report even implies incompetence. There are over 35,000 staff at the FBI, they are working on more than two cases.
Allow me to suggest we as a society in general, and men in particular have failed these athletes under the guise of "competition". Our legal system is focused on one allegation at a time. Police and prosecutors do not connect the dots because they system is not supposed to work that way. Young people are not taught about dignity and empowerment because physicians are placed on a pedestal by society ignorant of men committing crimes.
1
You can't have it both ways. The current FBI leadership and second level management need to be flushed. Whatever skills they think they have are not useful. They are even ineffective throwing elections to the Democrats.
1
As a former federal victim's advocate I am amazed that the FBI's advocate's office didn't contact these young women and their families. They should have, and also any agent worth his or her salt would also have reached out to the families while the case was being investigated. They also should have taken steps to make sure Nasser no longer had access to these young women and girls.
1
Is it news that the FBI and law enforcement generally don't immediately arrest suspects and throw them in jail without even the semblance of due process? That's not how justice institutions, with their power over life and liberty, are supposed to function in a free society. For immediate results, one must speak up and speak out. How is it that all these children and parents accepted the urging of U.S.A. Gymnastics officials to keep quiet? The answer to unwarranted obeisance to authority figures is not more despotic authority.
1
It is good and well to criticize law enforcement for a slow response to these complaints. But I have a nagging concern in all of this sordid story of Dr. Nasser and the other criminals preying on these girls. Where were the parents?
2
University officials and other involved in the sport should be going to jail along with Nassar. They failed in their responsibility and should be held accountable. From the President of the University on down.
FBI? Where were the parents, the coaches, the University of Michigan, the USA gymnastics organization, the teachers, the gymnastics community? Somehow the entire system worked together to enable this monster to continue his abuses. Law enforcement is the last resort in a situation like this, and the FBI moving quickly has been problematic throughout its history.
1
Those who knew about this and didn't stop it--officials and FBI agents--should also be charged, not just lose their jobs. They are complicit.
It seems that law enforcement found it more important what was on his hard drive--pictures of children no longer being harmed, than what he was doing to real live children.
Are you saying any investigation for any crime involving victims should include notification to any and all potential victims? Should investigators publish an ad in the newspapers or on television to let us all know whom they are investigating?
1
The takeaway is that this might still be happening if not for the Indianapolis Star report.
2
Where is the personal responsibility here? Why didn't those who knew what was going on warn other parents and gymnasts? Were they blinded by dreams of fame and fortune? I'm not casting blame, just asking questions.
2
As the first accuser of Harvey Weinstein led to fifty more, and to abuse charges against many more prominent alpha males, readers can only supposed that legion medical professionals are now trembling in their credentials as they await long-delayed prosecution for similar transgressions.
1
This is serious stuff but I do not know if it is "politically correct" to criticize FBI given that Comey et al will consider it demoralizing the premier investigative agency.
4
Nassar and the institutions that tried to cover up the crime and didn't put him on leave during the FBI investigation are the culprits here, not the FBI who investigated it and provided the evidence...
4
While there must be a presumption of innocence, there was nothing keeping the institutions for who Nasser worked from keeping him away from girls pending determination of the facts.
13
In addition to teachers and social workers, law enforcement officers are mandatory reporters of any suspected child abuse.
And the suspicion required to trigger a mandatory report is mich less than the proof required to convict in court.
This is deliberate by design.
Is anyone investigating whether the FBI officers involved fulfilled their prompt reporting mandate?
3
The FBI was the agency it was reported TO. Delays and obfuscation stand squarely in the court of USA Gymnastics and, it seems, the university.. It is fair to examine whether the FBI's investigation was adequate once it received the reports. But bear in mind the FBI may not have initially known about prior local reports and a sense of the extent of Nassar' wrongdoing. It appears at least some local law enforcement in Michigan tried to push the investigation along and there were prior contacts with the prosecutor's office there. The FBI actually was involved relatively late in this tragedy.
No, it is NOT right that the federal investigation may not have been conducted as expeditiously or as thoroughly as possible at the outset. Yet there were many missteps before the FBI was involved. AND remember USA Gymnastics top management took close to a month to report to the FBI and only after hiring its own investigator! ANYTHING like this should be reported immediately to law enforcement. Are any Olympics and USA Gymnastics staff mandatory reporters? Shouldn't they be? This recalls repeated failures by the Catholic Church to report sexual CRIMES to law enforcement.
This piece shines a bright light on failures at the federal level, like the hard-to -comprehend delay in interviewing victims. But the headline and article itself may need a bit more balance and information. There were MANY missed opportunities here, not only at the FBI. Thank God for the free press and FBI agent Hess.
4
To whom should they have reported?
The scope of this is so grotesque and the FBI lag traumatised the victims further. A nurse or physical therapist should be present at all times with both female and male underage athletes and varied according to the sex of both parties. Male doctors who have examined me have often invited a female nurse into the room to cover their bases and this is something I have appreciated. It makes good sense to do the same in all sports with underage athlestes and leave it open to request by athletes who are considered adults all over the world.
5
While we are at it - let's be CLEAR - Larry Nassar was not a physician. He recieved a doctorate in osteopathic medicine - which is very different from an M.D. As of late the terminology has become very muddied with even nurse practicioners with PhD going by "Doctor". So, another question is: Why didn't USA gymastics even bother to get a Medical Doctor for the team?
12
Your question is what's been bothering me about all this. Where's the M.D.? where's the orthopedist, who woukd best help them? and why was no nurse ever in the room?
This isn't accurate. DOs are real physicians just as much as MDs, and have been since the formalization of the medical profession in the United States. DO medical schools are a bit easier to get into (though still not easy), but that's basically the only difference. I think you are confusing them with chiropractors, who indeed are not real physicians.
This is an absolutely horrific story, and there is no excuse for how the FBI and U.S.A. Gymnastics handled it. One year?? They were indifferent to the crimes that were being committed. If a single individual had that little regard for the consequences of his actions, he would be called a sociopath.
2
If this were a teacher in a public school, they would be placed on administrative leave until they were cleared. Any administrator that failed to do that should forfeit their career. It's not an FBI problem, it's a gymnastics personnel problem. I do not understand why this did not happen, or why no one is asking why this didn't happen. This is very good reporting as far as it goes, which is not far enough. Why did Nassar have access to his victims while he was being investigated? Who was in charge of him? Doctors aren't Gods. They have bosses.
12
It is truly alarming that so many people were willing to turn the other cheek in order to gain a piece of metal, a colored ribbon, a few minutes on a pedestal. What price glory.
5
It is a little concerning that the headline focuses in on the FBI role in this perverted breach of trust between patient and physician. As I expected some of the commenters took the opportunity to add to distrust in the FBI. In effect continuing this undermining in our institutions that may threaten any remaining democracy in our government. However, most of the commenters have realized that this slowness by the FBI is to be expected in a highly bureaucratic organization that God forbid should move rashly and open itself up due to the lack of careful deliberate practice. Kudos to those commenters who point to the societal system that includes deep seated gender and age bias (both in not listening and in bearing continued shame), the special role of physicians in our society, the ponderous and conflicted nature of all large institutions, etc. These are deep seated societal issues that are not helped in understanding or improving by focusing blame on a convenient target. The article itself is much more balanced in nature but the headline is not, but I guess that is what sells newspapers.
8
@John:
An excellent, insightful, mature comment.
Refreshing!
2
Another revelation of the extent of human exploitation and abuse of power in this Country. This time the endless exploitation of young talented girls, not just be a predator abusing power and enabled by not a few, but all those involved from unwitting parent who did not consider they had a right to be in the room while their daughter was examined, to the authorities who paid him and failed to effectively monitor or supervise him. But the worst of all is how law enforcement defines what is urgent and warrants an immediate investigation with possible charges, and what is not. In this case once again everyone involved ignored the pleas of young girls, with only a few exceptions. This type of human exploitation continues because we Americans are so exceptional and great that we value denial more than truth, more than an obligation to care for one another and more than any correction of our culture’s faults and failures.
2
Is pelvic release a legitimate treatment? Yes. But protocol requires a chaperone and gloves, which he was clearly violating, even if there was doubt that he was doing it to everyone he could. Isn't there a procedure in place to discipline doctors who continually violate procedure? If he continued to violate, why WOULDN'T he be removed from seeing patients? Surely, the AMA has guidelines.
5
Isn't it true that many abusers seek fields where they have an easy "source" for abuse? Elementary School teachers. Coaches. Boy Scout leaders? Shouldn't men who enter these fields be held to a higher standard of review?
6
There have been numerous references in many media stories on the Nassar case to whether the intravaginal manipulation techniques he employed were/are indeed medically legitimate. But I have yet to see a story that explores those techniques in detail and provides expert analysis by medical professionals. What does the AMA say? Does it matter in this case that Nassar was a DO, not an MD? To most laymen, it seems obvious that these intrusive techniques should not be performed on young women and girls, but there must have been some medical reason that Nassar's peers supported him during earlier investigations. If indeed intravaginal manipulation is not quackery, might it be prudent to restrict it to women who have reached the age of consent? This point seems still relevant as it caused the FBI to question the medical appropriateness as it initiated its investigation.
Please, NYT, provide some much needed context and analysis on this issue!
9
What about the parents?
It seems to me that parents ( in some cases) had turned a blind eye as they were chasing gold glory to their daughters.
Do the parents of olympic athletes do ever talk to each other? it is more than obvious that the silence of parents is one to the root causes of this systematic abuse.
9
As one who has treated her share- I can tell you many parents have an impaired and unhealthy identification living through their child in these sports. Others have sublimated, willingly or by their child's own love and enthusiasm for their pursuit, their better judgment as parents to their child's will. Perfection is often inextricably linked to dedication bordering on obsession and extolled by public commentary, often 'color' provided by announcers selected from former 'winners and medal holders.' It is to a large degree - like our military - a self-perpetuating culture.
6
You sound like an insider in the real know. How many unhappy athletes have I met as an expat who have sought refuge abroad? A lot, that's all I can tell you.
1
I have never had a pelvic exam by a male doctor where a nurse, i.e., third person was not present. I don't know how a parent could allow a minor child to be examined and treated without them being present and/or a nurse, especially in re to a pelvic exam.
9
Shame on the FBI for not protecting these women with all deliberate speed. If it were W. Jay Abbott's daughter or relative involved I don't think he would accept "That's where things get tricky" as an explanation. In life there always seem to be multiple levels of concern and care based upon who you know and the levers of power that you can pull.
Reading these stories, I'm surprised that there were not rumors about Nassar sufficient to damage or destroy his reputation.
1
When an overly generous bartender indulges their spirit of hospitality at the expense of excessively drunk patrons, why don’t we call that abuse? Because people are grateful for extra large hangovers the next day? I really have a really hard time figuring us out.
One of the advantages to the Times running the same story for so many days in a row is that it affords to opportunity to consider it from a lot of different angles. Once past the initial shock of the stated alleged abuse, actually considering what abuse actually has come to represent starts to get sort of murky. Absent the more obvious abuses present elsewhere in far less fortunate and far more dangerous places as America, it feels sometimes like we have to create our own alternate reality to compete.
Well, the FBI could have just jailed Nassar for a year on suspicion, in the absence of evidence they believed they needed for a conviction and while they were developing it. Or they might have put on hold everything else that they do, including investigating terrorism, corruption, organized crime, cyber crime and civil rights violations, as well as investigating other serious crimes such as major thefts and murders -- to focus ALL their resources on this one case.
We could do the same thing for writers suspected of habitual split infinitives.
7
So much compassion.
I am always astonished that commenters argue against a position that pretty much no one holds.
Do you think the families of abused gymnasts wanted the FBI to drop everything, literally everything, to pursue this case? I didn’t see that in the story.
It’s a weak argument & beneath you, sir.
6
Sean:
I probably overacted, but the clickbait in the title offended me. Beyond that, the piece described the understandable frustration of the victims and their families, but made an inadequate attempt to tell the FBI's side of the story, referring to only one statement -- and the piece didn't specify when that statement was made, before or after they were made aware that a Times story was coming, or even if they WERE made aware of it; and all that offended me, as well.
I see no evidence in the piece that the FBI was remiss that would justify the picture of ho-hum that it painted of the FBI.
4
When I was 10 and my parents send me to swimming lessons the instructor accidentally touched my genitals pretending he was showing me proper form. I was too embarrassed to tell my parents but I never returned. I no longer recall his name, but imagine how rampant this if is even elite gymnasts are subject to it. The guys always pretend to do it by accident, in case you complain.
9
I realize that this monster was very skilled at grooming his prey, their parents, their coaches, everyone. But I am still astonished that these girls did not talk to someone, anyone....a friend, a parent, a coach. Were they truly so isolated that they couldn't reach out across the lines of expectations, goals, dreams? Were the parents so driven that they couldn't see their unhappy kids faces? Were they told to just suck it up, no pain no gain, whiners are losers? Were administrators so enamored of their doctor that they couldn't see or suspect anything?
I don't believe that most kids should aggressively compete, they should just have fun. So I guess this affirms my belief that people sacrifice things they might not have known they had for the gold medal or the brass ring. Like innocence. So sad.
8
I have been thinking about this, as well. So few of these young girls felt that they could be right and that Nassar was wrong. They overrode their feelings to placate others and keep the peace. I am not saying this to criticize them - just the opposite. If we haven't supported our girls in having, keeping and using their voices -- we as a country have failed them. So many of them in this one instance alone were attacked. I don't know what the answer is - but I do know that when it feels wrong - it is wrong. Period. I hope each of these girls now uses her voice to create the good and happy pain free life they deserve.
4
The answer to all your questions is YES. Unfortunately.
Why would you suggest that it is a young inexperienced girls responsibility to speak out about something so confusing to her and so private? Your comment really smacks of blaming the victim rather than the perpetrator of these monstrous crimes involving hundreds of young girls.
2
Seems like USAGymnastics should shoulder 99% of the blame here, telling parents and gymnasts not to call the police, and even telling some that this behavior was OK (and by allowing it to continue at their training center, supporting Nassar). And parents listened because they thought (wrongly) that USAG had their girls' best interests at heart. Ditto for Michigan, where some gymnasts were told BY A TRAINER that these treatments were legit. These girls were victimized by the USAG system, and still are, as they try to shift the blame to the FBI. How many years had Michigan and USAG been getting complaints about Nassar? If it's to the point that kids were calling him 'the butt doctor,' this guy was emboldened by the status he held in the USAG system and parents' wish to be a part of that system. I am a doctor and a parent of two daughters, and if my daughter was uncomfortable with what a doctor was doing and wanted me in the room, and then that 'doctor' proceeded to put his hands near my daughter's private parts as a part of 'treatment' for back issues, I would have been on the phone with the police. This man, and the people that enabled him, are foul.
8
In local gyms that offer training for gymnastics in the US, 80% of students are female and only 20% are male. Yet look at the percentage of female coaches for advanced female competitors...,mostly males. This should be a red flag.
Parents of children who aspire to be superstars in gymnastics perhaps have blinders on. Perhaps there are more parents who fulfill their own ambitions vicariously through their daughters becoming champions than there are children who are motivated for themselves. Tonya Harding’s mother’s mindset may be present in many parents whose daughters aspire to be Olympic medal winners in gymnastics. Not Lavona Golden’s vicious personality but Lavona’s vicarious ambitions housed in nicer packages.
Ambition can cloud a parent’s objectivity. Winning at any cost might be an underlying mindset which allows parents to naïvely trust monsters like Larry Nassar and Marta Karolyi with their innocent daughters.
How about this formula: female students with female coaches. Female trainers for female students. Female physical therapists and female sports physicians for female students. Parents present for all Therapy procedures on children.
To avoid making the same mistake the Catholic Church has made for hundreds of years, wake up America! In the last 30 years at least 3 male gymnastics coaches had sexual intercourse with female minors! And that is probably only the tip of the iceberg.
American parents, get your head out of the sand!!!
14
Sophia, I fully agree. These young gymnasts are wildly vulnerable and having female staff should really help. It is not the full answer, we know that male coaches also often abuse male child athletes. I think some parts of the story have already changed a bit. I just saw a few minutes of the Simone Biles biography, and it seems that whoever made the film was very careful to show her much of the time with female coaches. The optics of a male coach hugging the girls after their success is just too creepy.
I copied and pasted a quote from the article below on accountability. I was the victim of a violent attack at an MD's office in SoHo which included forcible touching of my genital area! My attacker was not fired or arrested! The NYPD don’t like my activism just like the Prospect Park Rape Victim so NYPD joined in breaking laws! I’m not alleging anything; I have evidence but 0 Justice over 5 1/2 years on going. The way that Leslie Miller and all of us across the country can hold people accountable is thru a series of databases. 1st I suggested an NYPD app tracker but a series of data bases city, state and federal to hold gov officials/employees that failed us, or were complicit, or in my case committed crimes accountable.
“Look at all the people who could’ve stopped him earlier,” said Leslie Miller, whose daughter Emma Ann was among the victims. “My goal is to find every single one of them in the haystack — expose them all, so this will never happen again.” For the entire country we need data bases / report how we have been failed and hold the people that should’ve taken action accountable, any government officials any employees that either committed crimes or protected crimes, passed the Corruption buck, etc instead of taking action! I believe we would see patterns that are shocking of how many people have failed us. See Something do Nothing? Lose your job and pension! Note Prospect Park Rape, John Miller wasn’t fired 23 yrs ago by Bratton who admitted she was raped!
4
Suzannah, Your notion that the abuse suffered in gymnastics is only a small part of the wider societal problem seems accurate and I can fully support the need to do something to remedy this horror. However, I am also concerned that this situation, like that of campus rape, involves "he said she said" in some cases. My guess is that most allegations are probably justified, but the rare false allegation is very worrying. The legal system is designed to protect the rights of the accused, even when the tide of societal condemnation is maximal. (Think rape allegations against black males in the Jim Crow south). The case you talk about, when NYPD do not fully support or investigate allegations, sounds like stories from rural India, but they are tough cases. I think even informed, well meaning people will have trouble devising clear solutions.
I don’t know how to address you because you don’t use your name I think what you are attempting to do is subtle and the goal undermining. Whether a college campus rape, India horrific gang rape — the victim or the family members that survived, witnesses can help upload evidence, video, audios, police reports and track every government agency/official they reached out for help ...I also think for instance a database could do that with men/women who spent 20, 30 years or more of their lives in jail when they were innocent , or a father and mother who lost their child shot by police officer like Nicholas Heyward - never got Justice and we can track how many DAs they went to year after year, which agencies failed them. The Prospect Park Rape Victim was vindicated 23 years later there should be tech flow charts.
It's nice so polite way you express yourself but the subtext hmmm
My aunt repeatedly molested me when I was a small child. My mother, I am sure, knew but did nothing to stop her sister's attacks.
Anyone who knew about Nassar and did nothing to protect these girls and young women deserves not only to lose their job, but to go to jail.
9
When the Head of the FBI, James Comey, tolerates agents like Peter Strzok sending text messages mistress about a Secret Society and an insurance policy to prevent a candidate from being elected by the American people, then you have a complete breakdown of the principles that are designed to focus on predator’s like Dr. Nassar.
When the focus of the FBI leadership places a higher priority on playing politics over the safety of victims of sex crimes, our society is in real trouble.
We need to Drain the Swamp of all law enforcement personnel who have such strong political views they can’t go after the sexual presators like Dr. Nassar.
1
Great illustration of how difficult it is to come up with solutions to problems that make things better in a highly polarized society. Many who want to solve this matter will not agree with your diagnosis that the problem is FBI agents like Peter Strozek. Once the pitchforks come out, the howling mob can use strong emotion to block everything positive about our rule of justice way of life.
Hopefully justice will triumph and the abuser gets his life sentence. Hopefully the victims, who are the heros in this travestry, can find strength and move on. The ones who will have more difficult disposing of the emotional baggage are the parents who swallowed Nasser's bilge without question.
1
This story disgusts me on so many levels. All I keep thinking of is that wonderful State court judge who finally listened and gave these girls and women a voice. Perhaps if any of the investigators had been women, those final few girls would have been spared. Thank you Judge Aquilina.
13
Firstly the FBI while culpable, is also seriously underfunded and currently beind derailed by the GOP/Trump.
Secondly Trump eviscerated the VAWA under the DOJ.
Lastly; How USA abuses its children
1) no new gun laws despite repeated school shootings
2) CHIP in danger
3)sexual abuse rampant and the most damaging thing for any female or rarely, male. Yet again, the grants under VAWA gone.
4) lack of oversight; no gloves? no chaperones? rumors not investigated; just like Harvey Weinstein; aka we tolerate abuse rape assault and coercion of females at any age
5
Kids are not believed. My eighth-grade teacher was a pervert and an abuser. I could not tell any adult about it without getting attacked for lying about a grownup.
11
If the Right, and now the NYTimes suceeds in diminishing the FBI, casting aspersions on their efforts and abilities without knowing any of the inner workings of the case, then next time kids are harassed they’ll just have to tell their parents because there won’t be an FBI.
Good work, comrades.
5
Another sad story or footnote about a culture in serious decline. Just as a reminder...We have a president who got elected after BRAGGING about sexual assault. Bragging. How sad that 53% of white women voted for this guy when more competent leaders were readily available. Harvey, Woody, The Donald, Nassar and on and on...
7
Ps
To all you doubters or those citing “hysteria,” let’s just try a simple analogy. If your son were an athlete with, say, a knee or hip injury, or a sore back, would you think an ungloved prostate exam appropriate?
13
Too many adults for too many years failed these girls. Shameful.
6
James Comey and his FBI were obviously preoccupied during that time trying to get the goods on Carter Page...a full time pursuit leading to the 100’s of criminal charges filed against him as a Russian Spy.
To get serious attention from the FBI, the heading of the complaint should have been 'Black Male with 2 grams of crack cocaine'. They slowly wormed their way through the investigation while 'Larry' marched on through his patients. And then the FBI itself starts pointing fingers, Indianapolis office, no, Denver office! Pathetic. The FBI and Michigan State University should investigate themselves internally, to find out why they responded at is glacial pace.
4
I'm afraid those whacked out Congressional Republicans will quickly commandeer this nauseating exposee, which fits the pattern of lackadaisical attention by authorities paid to rampant sexual abuses, into the GOP narrative of FBI incompetence. These girls were attacked, for God's sake. Politicizing this story would be the very worst thing they could do. Critical reports of heinous crimes against children languishing for a year is a piece of much greater societal problems that are stunning and shaming Americans, who had little concept of the subterranean world of sexual wrongdoing, sexual crime. We can't let any political party make hay of a national shame.
4
Larry Nassar was a real monster. The only consolation to many will be that he will be in prison for rest of his life and will not be in a position to be an awful sexual predator. It is an irony that it is during the Trump year in white house that has brought to justice and exposed the evil that has been going on for a long time. Thank you Trump for unleashing women power to ensure that this scourge is being finally dealt with in the measure that it has been in the past few months.
3
Perhaps ironic, but true. A good many commentators somehow blame Trump, but it seems most of the offenses (understatement) happened during Obama's terms and yet found some form of late justice under Trump. . Just saying.
2
The most shocking thing is how this sick individual got away with what he did for so long, is beyond belief.
6
I'm totally against the trashing of the FBI by Trump. He obviously colluded with the Russians. I mean, when you have a private meeting with just him and Putin with only a translator, that's the definition of collusion. But seriously, the FBI in many, many cases are completely incompetent. The Wen Ho Lee case courtesy of Agent Robert A. Messmer comes to mind. And now this. It's as if the agents in this case just didn't care. They are as guilty as Nassar in my view. But asking for accountability from the FBI? Good luck. The "hard working men and women of the FBI" line just doesn't fly with me. They have slackers and cruisers admist their ranks. When they going to clean their own house? Or at least tell their agents to just do their job and do it right.
6
So the NYT wants to kick the FBI when it's down? Personally, I'm grateful that the FBI is painstaking and goes slowly -- I've read too many books about countries where the national police (secret police) move quickly, independently and brutally.
15
Huh. This doesn't seem to be the same ethically pure, soundly functioning FBI that the NY Times lauds for their work in general, and particularly in their Trump investigation. Obviously the FBI bungled the investigation of Nassar the minute they decided to interview victims by phone and to be slaved to supposed jurisdictional entanglements. But none of this dysfunction could possibly happen in the Trump inquiry. Nope. Not possible.
4
My first thoughts are “how can the blame for this be put on the Obama Administration”....
3
Many around and involved in the gymnasts' programs....the committees, the university, the individual trainers HAD TO HAVE been aware of Dr Nasser's
abuse. Little girls could not speak up; victims of H. Weinstein didn't speak up for years and they were adults. But there were enablers going back before 2010 so blame them, and perhaps some of the parents who only wanted winning .
The FBI is dependable and thorough, and maybe not perfect, but without their tireless service our country would suffer a serious loss.
8
A very hard article to read as you keep wondering: why the delay? Sounds like the LA office of the FBI was much more diligent than the Michigan office of the FBI. But it really is unconscionable that no one else came forward from USA Gymnastics and the US Olympic Committee. This man is truly a sexual predator of the worst type. Lock him up and throw away the key.
4
This is bad, far worse than you can imagine. These women all need competent medical care now, immediately. This is all bad and it gets worse, athletes can 'tune out' pain, this is learned, and when the injury is back or joint related, that's exactly the wrong thing to do. When hundreds of athletes learned how to 'get tough' and 'tuned out' the pain to stay away from a malpracticing molesting doctor, there's a real danger they will repeat the practice in their future lives. Ignoring joint and back pain and toughing it out repeatedly is a recipe for crippling disability. So not only were these women molested, but they've been given extremely bad medical care that can and will land them in crippling pain filled wheelchairs in the future. That's part of the hidden tragedy waiting for a lot of these women. They need competent medical attention, 'getting tough' and 'tuning out' pain is a mistake they should unlearn, and they all learned it, that was Nassar's whole practice, that's why the goons at USA Gymnastics loved him. The damage is wider than you think, and its hidden, waiting. This is bad, far worse than you can imagine.
4
What have we become? People on this comment stream are literally using the sexual abuse of dozens of girls and the FBI's deliberate investigation which took time, as a way of trashing the bureau for the (pardon the pun) trumped up charges against them concerning the Russia investigation. What is the matter with you? So many people in this country have lost their way, plus those who are paid to create partisan hate. This is about young girls who were abused and scarred for life period. The rest is just distraction.
14
Annie P, I am in total agreement. I fear that social media outlets (even those associated with such venerable institutions as the NYT) have created multiple opportunities for those who would create discord and doubt to do so with impunity. Any efforts to conflate this investigation with the Russian election interference investigation are either ill-informed or purposeful. I'm afraid that a good bit of those efforts are, indeed, purposeful, and they are intended to do nothing other than further erode public confidence in institutions such as the FBI. Does the FBI deserve oversight and occasional criticism? Absolutely! But this cascade of criticism regarding totally unrelated issues strikes me as being just a bit too convenient for those who would profit from a weakened United States to be coincidental. Reader beware!!
4
People need to get around this idea that just because someone is a doctor, that he can't be a creep. Thru my many years as a patient, I've seen a few real "pieces of work." Just wondering, Is it the AMA that people are afraid of?
4
He wasn't a "doctor." He was an osteopath. Nothing to do with the AMA.
Qudos to the Indianapolis star. Thank you. The importance of a free press in our nation is urgent as this case clearly shows. POTUS and the AG would have you think otherwise. That they pedal fake goods and shoddy information. Yes many institutions failed these girls.
6
The number of authorities who knew about this and did nothing to protect or even inform children & parents now outnumbers he hundreds of victims. We need to take a hard look at what "doing your job" means.
4
How did this happen? Our American culture puts doctors on a pedestal. MSU covered this up for over 20 years. And the yee haw MSU Board of Trustees is still calling the shots. Still not fired!! And MSU, now under the leadership of a platinum Old Guard pol, John Engler, keeps appointing Old Guard cronies to run things. Incredible. MSU cares about their football and basketball programs. It is a pathetic joke. A Big Ten school like MSU whose scandal makes Jerry Sandusky at Penn State look like an episode of “Lassie.”
The Michigan legislature needs to step up and take over. Wipe out all MSU alums as top administrators. Fire the Trustees. Join the other 49 states who appoint university Trustees (rather than the current system of electing them in a statewide general election). MSU is worse than Frog Holler, Kentucky. Inbred and corrupt. And I lived in Michigan for 32 years after grad school. I know first hand.
Come on, Michigan legislature! Pretend all females are your own daughters. Take the action of a smart, protective parent. Not just continue the Old Boy Network who turns s blind eye as Engler assures a Status Quo.
2
Careful, careful, now folks. Let's not say anything to malign the reputation of the FBI ...
1
plodding bureaucracy ... grrrrrr
This story breaks my hear. Not clear to me why after one or two reports the FBI can’t move faster and w greater determination. Can I say it ? The FBI is not as great as this paper is currently trying to make itself out to be.
3
This is terribly sad, but the FBI had more important fish to fry at the time. They got Dinesh D’Sousa to serve several weekends in jail, did they not?Let’s call it a wash.
2
What business did the Olympic committee have putting a male doctor in charge of the care of teenage women?
5
From reading the NYT articles about the FBI-Russia-Trump investigation we are meant to believe the FBI is almost infallible.
From reading the NYT articles about the Nassar investigation we are meant to believe they make serious mistakes like everyone else.
2
way beyond serious mistakes .....
Maybe I'm over-simplistic but, why was a male doctor treating these young girls?
4
The sad thing here is that so many would be duped by pseudoscience.
The “health industry” is full of quacks, his treatment is similar to the 18th century practice of manipulation to calm “hysteria”.
The desire to win their goal obliterated common sense reasoning for a while.
FOMO.
we migjt want to recognize that even the FBI is affected by a legal system that is so convoluted that you have to have a litany of facts to get the job done. ...and this is what happens to people. Never the less this guy will be out in five years when it is argued he has a disease and needs treatment not punishment. A legal system will work up that reality out of thin air.
For anybody who complains about why it seems like every prominent man accused of sexual harassment or assault is now front page news, THIS is why. Without it being front page news there will be more victims.
3
Earlier a reader commented that it seemed to him Larry Nassar was practicing quack medicine. I agree. If not actual quackery, Nassar practiced an alternative to conventional medicine: osteopathic medicine which was developed in the late 19th century by Dr. Andrew Taylor Still in Kirksville, Missouri. Still claimed that conventional medicine lacked credible efficacy, was morally corrupt, treated effects rather than causes of disease, and often caused the patient more harm than good. Still believed that disease and physiologic dysfunction were etiologically grounded in musculoskeletal disorder and, thus manipulation of the musculoskeletal system, combined with surgery, and very little use of drugs would provide a better cure
Nassar, who had been working as an athletic trainer for the USA Gymnastics national team since 1986, graduated from the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1993, completed a fellowship in sports medicine and began working as an assistant professor at MSU's Department of Family and Community Medicine in the College of Medicine in 1997. Nassar, who specialized in the treatment of injuries in gymnastics, co-authored at least six research papers on the subject.
Despite his “expertise” Nassar took advantage, or rather perverted, the basic principle of osteopathic medicine, the manipulation of the musculoskeletal system, to sexually molest young girls and women, for which he will now serve up to 175 years in prison.
1
The coaches, team owners and leaders should be asked to explain why they let any of their athletes near this doctor!
And how many of them knew what was going on and did nothing?
But then again, everyone in congress knows that we have a deranged man in the White House. And everyone is waiting for Mueller and the FBI to do their tedious and painstaking investigative work.
History is repeating itself.
5
The FBI was too busy investigating the GOP on behalf of the Dems.
1
Our judicial system is, at its lower levels, broken. An average citizen can be arrested, no Miranda rights, and held without due process for even a misdemeanor. An obvious felon like Trump can become president. Our system is broken.
5
How to stop monsters like Sandusky and Nassar?
We need new laws holding accomplices accountable.
How?
When accomplices protect these monsters and fail to act responsibly
When accomplices assume penalty for not reporting these monsters
When accomplices share a cell behind bars with these monsters
It will never happens again.
I assure you that we will never reach this magnitude of assault over such long period of time.
We need a reporting system to allow filling a complaint and sign off docs.
Every board member, president, head of organization, anyone who knew and had the power to stop it but instead choose to protect these monsters or ignore it should be held accountable and share time behind bars.
It will never happens again!
1
Violence against women is just not considered a big deal anywhere in this country so it never gets prioritized
3
This story is a plant, designed to further erode Americans' confidence in the FBI as it closes in on Trump et al.
4
@Jayson: If you read the story, you will realize that it is not the FBI's fault. The fault is clearly with the administrators of the program who were trying to hush things up and who did not immediately relieve Nassar of his duties when the investigation began. He should have been put on leave or been transferred to a position where he had no contact with female patients while the investigation was ongoing.
3
This whole thing just makes me sick. These poor girls. They didn't know what to do. I am sure they felt so violated. How awful. Will they ever trust a male MD again? Or any male?
I hope they are provided free therapy to help them deal with what is a life altering assault. He did not just abuse them. He sexually assaulted them. I am glad he will be locked away for life.
4
How long until Trump tries to take advantage of the situation: proof that the FBI can't be trusted, and that James Comey and Christopher Wray share in the blame?
8
Nassar may have been the focal point but there are certainly people of M.S.U. and the Olympics gymnastics community that had to hear about this and either choose to believe the doctor or hid their head in the sand so as not to cause a problem. They need to be held accountable or this type of thing will never end.
3
The treatment of these girls always seemed cruel to me. Eight hour a day workouts constant injury problems the severe look on their so called coaches.Maybe what is needed is to look at this sport for what it has become abuse of little girls .
7
"As FBI took a Year to Pursue...." The title of this article and intent is clear. The FBI could have stopped this a lot sooner.
That's just not fair. Lots of other people could have stopped this horror much, much sooner. But not the FBI. Their witnesses were children/adolescents who could all decline to testify in a trial. The Civil Liberties Union would love to remind the authors of this article about the day care centers with workers prosecuted and convicted for sex abuse of large groups of children in the late 1980's and early 1990's. Having lots of reports does not translate into ready for trial, along with the go ahead to prosecute from the Department of Justice. Seriously, it seems as though the NY Times, in this case, is taking a horrible tragedy that could have been prevented on so many levels and using it to appear to be neutral about the White House allegations about the FBI. And I don't work for the FBI or know anyone who does. But I have seen over the years in the Courts how difficult it is to prepare a sex abuse case with child victims.
8
The focus of US law enforcement on prosecution and making an effective case in court seems to have trumped the actual job of the police: to protect the girls from abuse. It is worth rethinking a system that effectively uses little girls as bait to help catch a known sex offender. I would have been almost as happy seeing Nassar lose his license as lose his freedom, and perhaps a large number of victims could have been spared losing their innocence.
1
My thoughts on this: 1. Didn't the children ever speak with their parents about these "techniques"? 2. What were the parent's thinking and why did it take so long? Yes, Nasser is a pig, deserved more than what he got, but what about the parents of these children? Perhaps too much focus on the Gold Medal with blinders to everything else.
1
The FBI has been a joke since the debacle in Waco, TX. I have a few retired FBI agent friends and they retired because of the mishandling of Waco and Oklahoma City. So the FBI was in trouble long before Trump took the ringmaster's hat and stepped into the center ring of the circus better aka the US government.
The police and other law enforcement agencies must commit to investigating abuse complaints. If we are ever going to get past this sexual abuse mania, we need to have law enforcement take the lead and determine if crimes were committed and then give the alleged abuser their day on court. We also need to change our attitudes towards the survivors of assault and rape. They ARE NOT ruined for life or damaged in any way. They need help in seeing this and it starts with society telling them their lives are NOT ruined and they will be okay after a period of healing. I was raped at the age of 17 and sexually abused by several of my mother's boyfriends from the age of 3-12. I am thankful for the people who helped me see that I am only damaged and my lofe ruined if I choose to allow this to become a reality.
1
As a mom of three girls- I realized I don’t want them competing in a sport where they are emaciated, isolated and subject to these pains- for a gold medal for an institution that doesn’t care about them as souls.
5
The FBI needs some reform... Didn't the president say that too?
1
Whatever Nasser did by the way of treatment was unusual to say the least, and it is amazing that there was no “comparing notes” among the women about their experiences with him, for so long!! Wonder why??
1
This story just adds to the Trumpian criticism of the FBI! Is that its purpose?
More disturbing to me is that a whole lot of “professional” people allowed themselves to be hoodwinked by a “perverted” doctor with “quack” practices. The kinds of behaviors alleged and proved should have been handled immediately by local authorities without resort to the FBI. It happened enough around the nation to have been pursued in multiple venues which would have immediately alerted people to the issue.
One must not deny either the unbridled ambitions of parents, school and sports administrators, and student athletes of their own complicity in silence to advance their careers in gymnastics and other sports.
2
Adding the FBI to the list of organizations/institutions who did not take the girl's statements seriously enough to being about immedate change (like how about suspending Nassar while the investigation was ongoing) brings in to sharper focus the overall problem: we as a culture ignore the words of girls and young women.
1
One of the many routines that I was taught in medical school and residencies was to have a female observer in the exam room anytime a woman was undressed as part of a patient visit. It sounds pretty easy. If an ccasional patient is uncomfortable with the third person, they may be given the choice of referral. In about forty years of a non obstetric practice I recall one woman whom I think came "fishing", an adult female.
The medical profession's intimate involvement in racism and Jim Crowism is part of history. That it has also been shown to be an arena for other criminality should surprise no one. Rape, pedophilia, bribery, unnecessary procedures and scores of other misdemeanors and crimes in the profession may be found using any search engine. University Governance Boards have no excuse for not demanding Practice and Procedures handbooks and Administrators to ensure appropriate practices. Careless money hounds. I hope that the gut spilling continues ad infinitum and results in redistribution of wealth and removal of statues from pedestals and names from rooms and facilities.
3
Why are there so many male coaches in female gymnastics? What percentage are female?
2
This story unfolded while I was reading "Before We Were Yours," a novel about a real Tennessee child adoption ring which stole children from poor parents and sold them to the highest bidder. Some were raped, starved, beaten. Historians estimate that up to 500 died in horrific circumstances while in the "care" of the ring.
My book club wrestled with this and admitted we must all be fatally naive for we once thought this abuse of children was rare. Now we have the Nassar scandal, the atrocities in Irish Magdalene homes, the Rotherham scandal in Yorkshire, the Penn State scandal, the Florida home for "wayward" boys (also evidence of horrific sex abuse and murder)the ongoing revelations about the Catholic Church's complicity in moving known pedophiles from one location to the next, and on and on. In all of these scandals --and this is key--other adults knew about the abuse and did nothing.
There are desperately ill, deranged, dangerous people among us. They are sick. It is incumbent on those of us who are not ill to be vigilant, bold advocates for children who have no agency or advocacy when confronting adult corruption.
As a teacher, I am legally bound to speak up if I even suspect abuse. The same should be true of everyone. If something looks odd, ask questions, demand answers, seek help. Children depend on us to be a firewall, yet we're usually blind or complicit. It takes no courage for an adult to act. The victims have courage in abundance. They deserve much better.
4
All child athletes female and male should be examined by a Dr with a nurse perhaps. Also, maybe peer review of examination protocol by sports medicine doctors could be a part. Terrible that this happened. What about young boy athletes. Will they appear now too?
1
These women and girls were repeatedly told to “keep it quiet“, and I don’t fault them for following this advice. However, think of how much sooner this nightmare would’ve ended if they had felt comfortable going directly to the media.
Do you know how people are always asking, “why didn’t she just go to the police?“ Well, here’s your answer.
1
When I first read about Dr. Nassar's behavior I was outraged that none of the victims or their parents had done the obvious which was to report it to law enforcement - I was mistakenly convinced that once law enforcement was contacted they would immediately take action because the allegations clearly involved horrendous crimes of pedophilia. This article clearly shows that I was wrong. What is obviously needed is state and federal laws requiring law enforcement to immediately (say within one week) investigate allegations and, if there is any credible evidence, present it to a judge who has the power the issue an injunction to stop the alleged behavior.
50
Mathman - as far as the victims or parents reporting the crimes, don't forget that parents were often in the room while it was happening. (I'm not accusing you of not knowing this, just pointing it out for people who might not have heard about it: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/24/sports/larry-nassar-parents.html?acti...®ion=Marginalia&pgtype=article)
Adults know that massaging knotted muscles can be very painful, and might well have encouraged their daughters to take a deep breath and try to relax while this monster was fingering them.
Then there were the athletes who did report it to their coaches or university authorities, only to have their complaints ignored, or be told outright that they were lying or at best mistaken. Why would these teenagers (and not all of them were even teenagers yet) then go to the police?
3
Who was the head of the Justice Department at the time? He should be publicly identified and shamed
2
Yes. He should issue a public apology before a joint session of Congress with coverage by every major news channel.
Given Nassar 200 years or the equivalent while it relieves tension and makes women feel better as some of the more thoughtful ones pointed out is the start of the problem. Who is allowed to be a team physician for female gymnasts, how are examinations needs to be codified. If the FBI is doing counterintelligence and if they are as effective as with Nasser the Russians should rejoice. One can easilyprevent this from happening easily by giving supporting officials i.e. Board of Gymnastic Association, University Medical Staff manditory minimum 1 year sentences when repeated sexual abuse is done on female athletes by man. Given the supporting officials prison time and I guarantee this will probably never happen.
3
Apparently the Congress of the United States is more interested in degrading the FBI over its investigation into meddling in the elections in the US to worry about sexual abuse of young girls. If they were interested, they wouldn't stand behind a guy who brags about doing the same thing, and demand answers as to why this went on for so long without someone, anyone intervening to stop it. Surely they could write a memo about this. And demand that other situations (figure skating, skiing, track, etc)similar to this one be looked at to make sure it isn't happening there too. But then again there are higher priorities. There's a president to cover up for.
4
Unless and until women take power across all institutions political, social and cultural, this will happen again and again and again. Long past time for a major Lysistrata movement.
2
I've never had a gynecological exam by a male doctor in which he did not call in a female nurse (or when I was a teenager, my mother) to observe. I'm sure this is as much for the doctor's protection as the patient's, but if any male doctor fails to do this, it should be a red flag.
2
Thanks for writing this. One thing: Aly Raisman has six total Olympic medals, three of which are from The Rio Olympics. The others are from 2012.
Do you ever hear anyone in Government Law Enforcement say, "We are sorry that we were negligent and procrastinating, we did not do our best."
The FBI does not need investigation. It, along with any number of government agencies, needs reform and streamlining. We have known for a long time of the isolation of departments from each other. Why even Shakespeare bemoaned "the law's delay." What's new? Al Gore, where are you when we need you?
At any point in the investigation, Nasser could have been removed. The FBI isn't an employer at will.
I think law enforcement sat on this because as a society we don’t value women as we should. This country needs a lesson on loving all of our citizens, black, white, all shades of brown, women, lgbt, all religions or lack of religion, etc... Think how great things could be if we valued community and everyone in it. His medical license should have been revoked pending the fist complaint. I’m losing my faith in humanity...
So the recent infatuation with the FBI meets reality. Keystone Kops; trigger happy frat house; indifference to the citizenry. Can we finally, after 90 years of myth and undermining of democracy, put grown-up oversight in place?
It's time for the American people to define public safety and direct law enforcement through accountable civilian rule, and with some genuine transparency.
Without that, we'll have G-Men sniffing hotel sheets in Moscow and convincing courts to act on opposition research until democracy and reality-based public conversations are impossible to restore.
In the USA, the FBI may have struggled to believe the claims of young victims of sexual assault -- but they did successfully prosecute the case.
In other countries, where similar abuses of young athletes occur -- certainly in Russia, as we know from the people who work with Russian female athletic teams -- there is not even a chance of being heard.
This needs to be understood. A lot more must be done by international bodies that govern sports, to make sexual abuse obsolete.
All over the world, more people need to pay close attention when someone comes forward with such claims.
1
Legislation is needed to require anyone with any kind of license or certificate from a state or national agency to be a mandated reporter when they SUSPECT abuse of a minor may have occurred. While it varies from state to state, this has been a successful means of blowing the whistle on school employees. Any teacher in another classroom who is confided in by students, or sees something of concern, is mandated to report to the police or child protective services or school authorities for action. Putting licenses at risk is a big motivator. And the training that now occurs in schools about date rape, appropriate touching, and abuse by persons in a power position needs to expand to include appropriate medical and physical trainer behavior. Why are we even talking about this in 2018? Think back to your childhood. It wasn’t just priests—it was teachers, fathers, and others. They were all known and talked about by the kids. Adults did nothing except warn us to stay away.
Not to distract from Nassar’s gult, but when are the parents of these victims going to take their portion of responsibility? Reportedly, some parents (mothers who have admitted to this) were in the room during the assaults. Is it time to start using our own intellectual authority to question dubious acts regardless of the position, or reputation of others?
4
The institutions that did not immediately remove Nassar from his post when the first accusation arose are to solely blame. They had enough complaints to remove him. Here we are screaming at the FBI by folks eager to say someone’s civil liberties were violated, but then we scream at them when they slowly (sometimes too slowly in my mind) meticulously build a case against a perp.
68
Numbers speak and the stories behind these victims will point their fingers to those who enabled Nassar.
As someone who taught dance before the amateur competition scene took over, I watched how an Art became a sport and became a money making machine—just as you follow the money in politics, I am sure that the same could be said about the trending of the medals and awards that were almost half the size of the 'competitor'.
I hope that the parents of young students educate themselves about injury prevention—'pre-habilitation'—before they get to the point of injury where medical jargon and procedures are beyond comprehension and so they rely on 'experts' and 'trust'.
Most reputable teachers have been educated on child development from a physical as well as emotional point of view—they understand that there is no race to the top; and that nurturing the love that these children have for their Art or Sport is something that can be developed without damage to their physical and emotional body.
Those administrators who led the gymnastics will see that they may have helped create medalists but they also created a monster—and for that they should atone.
1
It is perhaps time to consider not even allowing underage girls to compete in the Olympics.
But that would undermine the wildly-popular-with-audiences (and advertisers) entire sport—which is built on the unique physiological limberness of young females in this age group. Many of them "retire" at age 19, for instance.
3
The videos need to be obvious evidence that this is part of a systemic culture failure. After all, medicine is not in the dark ages anymore - medical scientific peer review journals are among the most read peer review journals of all, spanning infectious diseases to environmental health.
Surely, there would be a scientific way and context to analyze the videos; the fact that university entities, of all entities, failed to do so, defies all logic. Everybody needs to be held accountable.
The fact that the artistry shown by these athletes on the field arose in between such perversion is a testament of the resilience of the human spirit.
I ask the same question as N.Parker in Dallas. Excellent point! What is a victim to do when they aren’t believed and their reality is ignored by those closest to them? They develop a whole host of emotional and adjustment issues. I hope these young women are compensated with good psychotherapy (and money) to deal with justified rage, depression, etc. It is testament to their own strong inner cores that they have been successful in their sport. May they receive much love and support now.
2
"As F.B.I. Took a Year to Pursue...."
Shocking, yet again, another "Unparalleled War on a Pillar of Society: Law Enforcement." Further acts of collusion with President Trump no doubt.
"The F.B.I. declined to answer detailed questions...."
And why should they?
Government agencies and employees are sacrosanct, their conduct must never be questioned or exposed in a democracy where an all powerful secret police force is essential.
Remember J. Edgar Hoover -- never questioned, never doubted, never exposed, never criticized. So, let's not start now!
The details of this story must be ignored, only the motives of its writers and editors matter.
Why wasn't Nassar (I wouldn't call him "Dr." and I hope his medical degree will be revoked in addition to his license) suspended pending the outcome of the FBI investigation? Investigations take time and have to be done rigorously, especially when the charges are that serious. One wouldn't want the perp to go free or receive a light sentence due to disputable evidence. The FBI cannot be blamed for that.
2
This is outrageous -- there is no excuse for an organization (especially a public funded one) taking this long -- whether it's Flint, the VA or anything else. Hopefully, the NYTimes will do followup articles that will further expose the agency's lackadaisical (at best) approach and reduce the likelihood of a future similar situation.
Sorry , but the FBI must follow procedures to ensure justice. The failure was not the FBI, they also should fear false accusation that can be made too easily nowadays. The delay by the sport organization & parents are the two ingredients at fault here. Their job is at all costs to protect the athlete . The FBI responsibility is to bring justice & not vigilanteism,to stop a crime.
1
There is a lot of ambiguity here about the 'treatments.' We've not heard anything from the patients that didn't report abuse. What were the maladies with the girls that saw him for treatment? What did the coaches think of the treatments and were these treatments discussed with the coaches? Nassar did prey on the innocent but they were let down by more than the FBI. It would be interesting to hear from someone treated by Nassar that had a proper medical experience.
1
If one of more of the legal guardians of each of these young gymnasts had been complying fully with their duty in law and in equity to safeguard the welfare of the gymnast, then it would not have been possible for this abuse to have gone on year after year, undetected or ignored, suspected but never stopped.
When a parent is not actively engaged in looking out for the welfare of their underage daughter, then the coach or team manager is acting in loco parentis. Hence, one or more adults should have stopped this.
Every adult who helped to enable the predatory conduct of this convicted criminal needs to be brought to account. And, yes, this includes every parent who was more interested in Olympic glory than the welfare of his or her daughter.
4
so I guess this is demonize the FBI week. Before you rush to judgement, think about the number of FBI agents, and the number of cases under their mandate, which includes counterterrorism here and abroad, bank robberies, child exploitation (though some of that has been taken on by DHS), racketeering and all manner of financial crimes, corruption of elected officials, etc etc etc. Add to that the fact that they can't just say someone is guilty, they have to build a case that will stand up in court. AND, any emergency--such as an act of terrorism or the DC sniper, for example--can get them yanked off their current case to augment teams handling emergencies. They are stretched unbelievably thin. Are they perfect? No. But there were may, many agencies working on this case, and stage mothers who kept quiet because USA Gymnastics told them to. You can't put the blame on the FBI.
1
Too many organizations make their primary concern the protection of their own reputations- even if it means many children are going to be hurt.
It is almost as if no US public or private organizations can be trusted.
Leadership in America, apparently, requires placing the organization before the safety of children.
Where was the medical community? Does anyone seriously believe that no doctors or nurses saw what was happening?
I have to assume that the medical community was involved but did nothing because, you know, we cannot have doctors answering complaints
11
"Leadership in America, apparently, requires placing the organization before the safety of children."
It looks families do that too for financial gain.
1
As a nurse practitioner, I wonder that myself. He worked alone, but who was watching those "instructional videos?" Were they intended to teach others?
And when he needed a third party to be present in the room during exams, what did this person/witness ever see? Did they trust his hands under the draping white sheets? As a staff nurse, I worked at a hospital ED decades ago where a male doctor suddenly needed a witness (one of us) to be in the room when he had any female patients. Good time to stop the doctor's practice, I'd say.
If my athlete daughter had had to have "intravaginal massages" as treatment for sport injuries, I would have said no and removed her from the sport. I also would have reported the "treatment" to her pediatrician. These youngsters were 13 to 17. Unprotected by all.
22
I hope parents absorb this necessary lessons from this most vivid account and start instructing their children -- and from a much younger age than imagined -- about their private areas and older figures in their life who mustn't touch them in any such area without a parent's presence. As children age and without scaring them, the lessons have to become increasingly specific in identifying the kinds of adults who have no rights to their bodies and in detailing general kinds of abuses. Schools and pediatricians should back up parents when they feel uncomfortable in discussing this subject.
3
"These youngsters were 13 to 17."
We try to protect them from alcohol and tobacco but not from sexual predators.
P. S. Those who care about the safety and dignity of women in sports might wish to investigate women's volleyball at the high school and college levels, where girls are under extreme pressure from male (and female) coaches to 'put out' or forget about starting. It's constant and it's rampant. I am sure the same holds true for swimming, soccer, and many other sports. High school juniors and seniors need playing time to earn scholarships. Once accepted to colleges, they need to keep those scholarships. The coaches and the players all know this and the 'game' goes on. This Olympic scandal, as bad as it is, is just the tip of the iceberg.
13
Maybe it is time to stop putting children, however talented, into a national sport. Maybe it is time that we wait till they are adults before we put them into an intense training and national spotlight, making them the trophies for coaches. Let's just stop putting our daughters at risk. Let's just stop this sport
13
"Maybe it is time to stop putting children, however talented, into a national sport."
Certainly Greeks who started the Olympics were wiser than us. There were no children in classical Olympics.
1
You stop what that generates billions? Tell tat to all those high schools where football and basketball is king, never mind the national stuff. Lets just stop broadcasting the stuff? Tell that to major colleges. ESPN carries high school sports. Why? It makes money for the school and network. If those sisters had gone to daddy early and he got to Nassar before he even got arrested, Nassar would be dead most likely. Daughters need to be taught to tell about it the firsts time any attempt is made on them. It really is the unknown topic in families unfortunately, conferring a false sense of guilt on the girls. I see those two girls looking down as if they did something wrong.
By all means, let's banish young girls to an African hut at a good distance from the rest of society. Deprive them of their freedom to display their rare gifts and talents just to avoid tempting the lecherous. Let's punish the wrong people.
The consequence of prolonged inaction on so many levels when it involves vulnerable victims is stunning. It seems that after all we've learned from similar cases of abuse - Penn State, the Catholic Church and the Flint, MI water crisis come to mind - we still haven't learned much.
11
The "rape culture" that had prevailed until (virtually) "yesterday" declared that without a third-party witness, no rape had occurred and the suspect could pursue a "false accusation" suit. The victimized children and young women were told that if they didn't submit to the "treatment", they would not be allowed to compete. To say otherwise is to blame the victim, an easy out for cowards.
1
I think the University and the gymnastics organizations involved should have suspended Nassar pending the investigations as soon as they began. Investigations take time to be completed; if not completed properly the perp walks and victims further victimized by lack of justice. Law enforcement must follow laws and due process....we cannot throw people in jail on suspicions or even allegations.
Those in charge of the organizations could have and should have taken action while the investigation was underway.
Girls and women are learning to listen to their gut feelings about what's ok or not when it comes to their bodies, society is slowly beginning to back them up. I hope tragedies like this one will help move society forward on individual and institutional levels.
81
It could be that President Trump's indictment of the FBI is not all smoke and mirrors and that the agency does need cleaning out and retasking.
While his own travails will play out as they will, situations such has this, where civilian reporters can get something done, speaks ill of a national and vaunted agency that we admired growing up.
6
MSU employees were informed about the abuse over eighteen years. Whether the FBI are investigating a heinous predator; gruesome murder; or any other crime, they need to obtain the evidence which takes time. And they cannot refer for criminal prosecution until they complete their investigation. This is absolutely not the FBI’s fault.
9
" .. This is absolutely not the FBI’s fault .."
I seriously doubt female federal legislators would agree with you.
That said -- the FBI considers itself an elite group -- lawyers, CPAs. Who focus on very big cases, many white-collar. It is state and local police forces who deal directly thugs.
I grow so weary about reading official statements from government agencies or private enterprises, along the lines of we take these allegations very seriously, or protecting our youth is our top priority etc., etc.
The FBI clearly failed these child victims along with any local police department where Nasder’s assaults came to their attention and nothing was done.
As a retired police officer my specialty when I was a detective was investigating child sexual assault. And I can tell you that if a child disclosed to anyone that he or she was being sexually assaulted my police agency jumped on the investigation with immediacy protecting the child and investigating the alleged perpetrator.
There was no delay. What happened to these young women was beyond tragic. And the organizations that allowed Nasser to continue his assaults should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, criminally and civilly.
22
I write this reply because I am curious, not as a challenge or a rebuttal. Clearly this is an outrageous crime-horrible in every respect.
My question is this: How is this a crime that meets the threshold of FBI interest?
The Bureau looks at kidnapping, bank fraud, espionage... ???
If this is a RICO deal, who else will be indicted?
As a retired (34 years) operating room Registered Nurse it was an imperative in my profession to always advocate for patient rights and privacy. When EMTs were observing or applying intubation techniques on patients going under general anesthesia for their certifications, they were always asked (at least in my room) to leave the operating room before any further positioning or preparation on the patient was done. In procedures where the pelvis was not the primary site but where the patient had to be naked under her or his gown (which is a standard in case of emergencies) I would put a sterile cloth towel over the entire pelvic region to maintain that patient's privacy. A perfect example would be knee arthroscopy, a procedure these poor young girls might have had to endure through their careers,where the limb is exposed but where other areas can be exposed in manipulation prior to draping. There is no more vulnerable person than one who is anesthetized.
This is a very sad and upsetting article to read. My wife and I raised our daughter, our only child, to be an advocate for herself and to never, never distrust her instincts regarding anything, 'If you think there's something wrong, there probably is' was our mantra.
19
The F.B.I could be the first venerable institution to lose public respect/trust and go down. Donald Trump and associates thrive on the institutional chaos.
Nowadays, the US perception from overseas is of a superpower undergoing a serious existential crisis. To begin with, a political system no longer delivering results demanded by the population.
As the FBI case demonstrates, the aging institutional apparatus shows clear signs of losing effectiveness. The US is a country lost with internal contradictions and unable to find a way out.
40
Well said. And our legal system is too blame for allowing the extremes that are rife in the dispensation of justice, or lack of thereof. Often connected people such as Nassar and Sandusky are allowed to fly under the radar for years by enablers while low level criminals, usually minority and low income, are railroad and incarcerated for a traffic infraction while on probation!
If this keeps up, when justice is needlessly and wrongly delayed, we may find here in America a return to the vigilante justice of colonial times and the wild west.
2
I guess you are not an Electoral College enthusiast. Whatever the purpose now, it still was created to balance the powers that be and to let States have individual rights. There is not a lot that can be done to change that. If they do, than no one running for President will be coming to CT or SC to campaign.
Selectively lost.
I don't think it's the FBI's fault that the media/Universities/and Corporate shills have formed beneficial partnerships to the unfortunate detriment of the powerless few.
2
This entire nightmare is like a work of fiction, but it's sadly not. My heart breaks for every girl and their families. Thank you for being so strong and for sharing your stories. The adults and system failed you.
6
I feel that there is insufficient attention paid by the press to how sex offenders, in particular of young people, manipulate everyone in order to assault their victims. Twice in my professional life, I learned that a colleague had been offending our clients. I instantly knew that I gave credence to the accusation, because I had cooperated with their behavior.
One instructor had been giving baths to his six year old students in special education. A supervisor had been assigning to himself the thirteen year old boys who were in families in family therapy. The little boys were dirty, the 13 year olds certainly needed help. And I don't have any idea of what damage was done. What I do know is that I had been coopted, had accepted the behavior as normal when other teachers didn't bathe kids and other supervisors did not cherry-pick clients.
Thank goodness my role was only to be a bystander. You would be enraged if you had had a responsible role. But my point is that the offenders are targeting the other adults as well as the victims. They are laughing at them as they fool them. We all need to give everybody slack, and this reality is how offenders attack entire systems in order to set up their victims. A few people may collude with the criminal, but most are trying and failing to cope with him.
3
Bro, you write: "Thank goodness my role was only to be a bystander."
In 2015, I was a "bystander," teaching at a private school where a handsome 40-something administrator was being seen around town late at night with a 15-year-old female student. When I learned of this, I objected, met with all teachers, the principal and the board to inform them of my objection, declined renewal of my annual contract, called the appropriate state bureau and the school's accrediting agencies, and informed all parents of every bit of concrete suspect behavior I could. Three years hence an enormous civil lawsuit is underway due to two of the victims stepping forward and stating sexual relations accompanied by profound sexual harassment occurred.
People "bystand" because they put their financial interests ahead of the safety of children.
3
"Ghost", I stood by because it didn't occur to me that there was a problem. You saw that there was a big problem and kept at it till you resolved it. Today, I've been looking in to how these situations I witnessed blew up. In each case it was an outsider who put the story together. My contribution was to realize at that point what I had been looking at. In one case, I was asked long before the blow-up about a non-sexual difficulty. it appeared to me that the victim was not assertive enough to get what she needed. When I heard that the supervisor was being sued, I realized that he had not liked the victim and had not helped her to carry out her responsibilities. She was moved to a better placement, without his being blamed as far as I know.
You sound like you were an insider to begin with who had enough info to work with. Regarding my "outsider" hypothesis, I imagine you felt a lot like an outsider during the fight. Maybe you were a total outsider. Maybe your life was disrupted. It sounds like you fought the good fight and some people at least must appreciate what you did.
These young women were failed by just about everyone at every single level of authority. The early reporters were not believed by local law enforcement or by Nassar’s employers. When the FBI finally did investigate, they were singularly focused on process, while losing sight of their ultimate responsibility, the safety of these young women. While more and more women were being abused by Nassar, the FBI was worried about which office had jurisdiction and who should be returning phone calls. They treated this investigation like it was some kind of white collar embezzlement case and they had all the time in the world to plod along unraveling the facts, piece by piece. And with each day and each hour, more young women were being abused. If ever you needed an example that the FBI and other federal agencies are more concerned with process than the outcome, one need look no further than this case.
8
This whole story is heartbreaking. Why did it take so long and why was it covered up by the University and Olympic Committees for so long. Those poor young girls, hundreds of them, are scarred for life.
Nassau is an animal.
4
This issue has been terrible for his patients. And, for sure he’s not the only one.
Just a thought here - there are a half dozen major websites where you can rate an MD. But very few people do. You can also rate just about any service on Yelp. We all rely on product recommendations heavily for buying something as simple as a coffee maker - let’s apply the same practice to choosing a health care or legal provider. And, after an appointment, take a moment to rate and comment on doctors, dentists, lawyers, orthodontists, dermatologists, therapists, etc.
3
It has been the case for decades that a doctor should never see a female or minor patient without a nurse or parent present. Someone at the governing bodies or the have been asking should have been asking the simple question of who was present during Nassar's exams and treatments. The failure of everyone to insure that this rule was being followed is incredible. Shame on all of them.
5
Unfortunately in fighting over jurisdiction is a more widespread problem that needs to be addressed more generally.
I remember the assistant harbormaster of Bristol RI told me the story of several police entities, local, state, coastguard, federal antinarcotics agency, I forget whether the FBI or who else were fighting who will do the bust of boat suspected to be loaded with marijuana to get the credit. The boat slipped away with its valuable cargo to safety.
Were some reports showing knowledge that could have prevented 911 went unused because of communication dysfunctional? Unfortunately the current administration is trying hard to weaken law enforcement, instead of fixing problems, in order to protect their own criminality.
2
So Nassar developed the "shaky-thing" using his fingers and there was no oversight committee or experts? It used to be that scientists would go before their colleagues to present anything that they developed for critique. His techniques were considered "cutting edge" so they chose to ignore his complaints. As for the FBI they are not going to be involved unless they see a federal crime being committed. The officials in the state of Michigan are responsible for investigating state crimes. Even when one of the girls reported him to the police they were duped by his power point presentation and never brought charges against him.
1
Our society needs to reevaluate its priorities.
A regrettable one night stand with a celebrity, in which the adult woman admits everything was consensual, apparently warrants quickly, immediately, and publicly exposing the celebrity. But when there is substantial evidence children are being sexually assaulted, we need to be more patient, more careful, and do everything by the book??
1
Kids in athletics especially of Olympic quality are asked to endure anything and everything. For example, elementary age kids should be organizing their own games instead of being "coached" to win. Does anyone remember the baseball game "Workup"? There might have been a teacher nearby to make sure no one got hurt or to keep order but that's all. There was no "coaching". Youngsters developed leadership skills and a sense of fair play on their own.
2
Some commenters have asked is proper oversight was conducted by medical boards, which is an important question. I believe I've read that Nassar was an osteopath, and I wonder if that field has a separate oversight system. Would state jurisdiction also have been confused, as occurred with the FBI? This is another set of questions that need to be explored.
3
This is a very interesting piece. I agree, the FBI could have moved faster. One year to investigate multi-state allegations of crimes against children and young women is appalling.
A different lens would be to praise the Indy Star for their dogged reporting for years over this problem, while no one listened. Or, their exposure of the decades long reports to the Olympic Organizations, local police departments, and involved Universities. But heavens, let's blame the FBI because they took one year. Jeez. I don't know what makes me more mad, that young women and girls are not listened to, local police, mandated reporters of abuse, Universities, and other large organizations can ignore concerns for decades, or that the FBI took a year for its investigation.
As no one looks good here, it's nice to single out one convenient villain.
68
Why is it anymore appalling than the White House taking a year to implement Russian sanctions? Men do what they do because there is usually always their own self created assurance they will "get away with it."
The reality of these cases is that they drag on not with the FBI but with local authorities who want to prove allegations are true and then report to the state and fed.
It's not surprising that the most abuse takes place among the "elite". They think they are "masters of the universe", untouchable, do not have to follow any laws of nature or governments.
TIME'S UP, boys and girls.
2
So, reading this I finally get some information about what Nassar was actually doing. I'm no doctor but it certainly sounds like quack medicine. A big part of the blame is on the US Gymnastics organization as well as the USOC. When someone starts talking quack medicine there should have been some real pro's checking this duck out. That and they should have had 3rd party female "chaperones" to talk to these girls, get their pulse so to speak. That alone would have sent alarm bells ringing years ago.
103
I believe it was the gymnast coach who was told in great detail And thencalled in another girl and asked specifically about behaviors of Nassar. That girl concurred and the coach did nothing. I think people like that should go to prison too. As a psychotherapist I am a mandated reporter and I would think that the coaches and teachers will also be.
1
I would suggest that we get one thing straight. The man wasn't practicing any kind of medicine, quack or whatever you'd like to call it. He was practicing sexual molestation.
He was sexually assaulting them. Let’s call it what it was rather than “quack medicine”.
4
If it were not for the reporters at the Indianapolis Star, how long would Nassar have been able to keep victimizing children? The FBI needs to be investigated for its failure to stop Nassar for an entire year! How does it prioritize cases? I guess child abuse of dozens of girls just didn't make it to the top of the list.
114
Excuse me, but while a "girl" just entering puberty might not have felt free to discuss her "treatments", reports had been filed with local LEOs and complaints had been made to various bodies not without some authority. It's unjust that a person accused of an offense can lose reputation and credentials if it is not proven that the complaints were true, it is equally reprehensible that a person posing as a medical doctor poses as a general specialist in many areas of medicine. Doesn't ordinarily happen.
How long, a hundred years?, has it been since Sigmund Freud was experimenting with young
girls for what was termed "hysteria"?
Clearly the arrogance and bullying by frauds in the medical fields has continued. Protect complainants from lawsuits. Suspensions from "practicing" can be quiet and swift. There is no justification for women or men of any age to be expected to continue exposure to predators for
any reason. Yet people, fearful for the consequences of medical problems, are not protected from so-called treatments even more harmful. It ceases to be humorous that "the procedure was successful, but the patient died."
Numerous remedies should have been vigorously pursued by the time the FBI was called in.
2
No doubt Nassar is a monster but the article clearly shows that U.S.A. Gymnastics knew about Nassar's continuing abuse of young women and chose to ignore it and or cover it up. U.S.A. Gymnastics, Michigan State University and the United States Olympic Committee are all complicit to varying degrees in allowing Nassar's continuing abuse and guilty of remaining silent and trying to ignore the problem. The FBI is fourth in line in terms of responsibility and the three parties who are clearly more responsible present a pretty difficult bar of authority to overcome.
Why not investigate the IOC? You sound like another supporter of our current President to me. They were slow...and now it is common knowledge so I am sure there will be fallout. But the Olympics people have the onus on them as they were where this sick person was allowed to work. Has anyone heard of firing a predator first? Then investigation prior to conviction...Those are the logical steps and if you talk to the Olympians they are very angry with the IOC and US Olympic authorities.
The FBI sounds like "The Gang that Couldn't Shoot Straight."
27
Every time I see a young girl gymanast getting a hug from her coach I get a slightly sick feeling. Why are these children put under such physical and emotional stress? And then the sexually assaulted? What is this for?
58
Educators are trained to recognize child abuse or potential child abuse. I agree about watching the coaches hug closely the gymnasts. It has always raised red flags. It caused me to wonder who was protecting these young girls. I stopped watching the sport as a result as I feel there is abuse going on. I think there is a lot more to be uncovered.
1
Agreed. The coach is not her father and should NOT be hugging her or any gymnast! And my father, very warm and loving, only had me give him a peck on the cheek. Since I was a primary school child there was no hugging. Not appropriate.
2
I agree. Eastern Europe would be very suspect on my list based upon the hugs. Woman coaches can be abusers too
This is very upsetting. If an Olympic level athlete can't get law enforcement to pay attention to an abuse complaint, what would happen to an average girl?
I saw that Congress is going to require all allegations of abuse directly to law enforcement. But what good will that do if the local police care more about protecting a college football star, than a random girl who was abused or assaulted?
It is also upsetting that nobody is US Gymnastic, the USOC, or Michigan State is taking personal responsibility for mishandling the situation. It is obvious to me they are all very concerned about personal lawsuits, or the possibility of going to jail for negligence.
Hearing them all say, our hearts go out to the victims, seems a pathetic statement. Their hearts did not go out when the abuse was taking place. They are all hoping just paying for therapy will be enough, and there won't be massive losses from lawsuits, which would be well deserved, and still not help the girls who had been repeatedly molested.
70
I am shocked by the lack of outrage with the FBI in the comments here. The American people deserve a better explanation from the FBI as to why they still had not taken action on Nassar more than a year after receiving reports. Was it bad processes for handling these types of cases? Particular individuals who dropped the ball? This is unacceptable and should lead to further investigation and changes at the FBI.
54
It's easy to throw stones, but as the FBI agent in the article pointed out everyone has rights, even the accused. Trying to sort out the jurisdictional issues State versus Federal Etc takes time.
The blame here lies on USA Gymnastics for covering it up and not following up after they reported, not the FBI who may not be perfect, but doing an outstanding, and mostly thankless job, day in and day out, to keep us safe.
Certainly makes the FBI failures in the previous election all the more credible
Rich, powerful, high-status "perpetrators" can "delay justice" for a long time because they can intimidate, mislead and pay other people off. They can afford to hire top-notch lawyers, public relations firms and private investigators, and often have political or institutional protection. Harvey Weinstein hired former Mossad (Israeli Intelligence) agents to investigate and intimidate women he allegedly molested! Although police Internal Affairs departments usually do a good job of weeding out crooked cops, there should also be independent police oversight committees and routine polygraph exams to weed out corruption or cover-ups among high-level police officials. High-level Bureaucrats "cover up" problems to protect their jobs and their organization, as the Catholic Church hierarchy, Penn State, Hollywood, Silicon Valley, Congress, US Olympic sports officials, TV networks, NPR, and everyone else covered up sex abuses for decades. FBI misdeeds under the late "Director for Life" J. Edgar Hoover, a masterful but self-serving bureaucrat who kept his job 48 years, should have been investigated by Congress and the news media. J. Edgar had cleverly collected "dirt" on all of them, usually sex scandals. They were ALL too cowardly to risk public humiliation because they valued their "Precious" Ring of Power and their jobs more than their public duty and their honor.
42
This reminds me of July, 2001 when the Phoenix FBI office set off alarm bells to headquarters in DC about Saudi nationals taking flying lessons in jets without being interested in how to take off or land.
Their concerns were ignored until 9/11/01. Jurisdiction is very important don’t you know.
129
Or the FBI out of my state, who raised concerns over a student at a flight school who didn't want to waste his time on landing ....
That's a cool story even though it's false.
I agree with “Shamrock,” that yes, the President, the AG and the Justice department could have done more. Should have done more.
They chase windmills while Rome burns.
16
‘Law enforcement,’ a touching tribute to the Bureau now under partisan attack. Try this. I am old enough to remember Hoover’s years, was in language training at Monterey Language School with Agents returning from Selma who would chortle over the trashing their friends the police had performed on demonstrators as they stood and watched. Heard their stories of always having a handkerchief peaking from their suit pocket as the inside joke for the day they had to wipe their hand before shaking Hoover’s. The Handkerchief was always a marker for me when under surveillance, as professor in Slavic studies and war and civil rights protester, and amused by the clicking sound on my phone at the noise of the end of the eight track tape – not too subtle surveillance. Would love to think the Bureau has moved on but no reason to see it as anything more that what it was – a tool of those in power. In my time that was Hoover and Presidents deferred to him for cause.
22
That the FBI didn't indict Dr. Nassar immediately after all the women and girls complained is the Legal Rule that a man is innocent until proven guilty. That however shouldn't have prevented his being suspended by the appropriate gymnastics organizations or the University. The real problem was that the FBI didn't see this as horrifying as it was. I would like to know how many of the agents were women.
165
Your lack of legal training is evident.
A case should be investigated once reasonable suspicion emerges that a crime has been committed.
The FBI does not indict. They refer matters to prosecutors who make the decisions on how and where the cases are to be charged.
25
It is true that the FBI does not indict, but the agency can set a priority behind its findings so that the local/regional prosecutors can set importance. A file tossed on a busy desk does not get opened immediately unless there is a tag on it to indicate priority.
2
Nevertheless, how many agents were women?
1
I still don’t understand why the FBI investigation took so long. There is no comment from the FBI on why?!?!? That is outrageous.
13
Too busy looking into the Russian interference in our election.
17
It’s very interesting that when the parents went to a different branch of the FBI action was taken where as with the first one years went by and more people were abused. This actually is similar to the fact that it was known that the Russians were trying to get Trump elected but nothing was done because President Obama did not want to come across as trying to influence the election. And God knows if he only had come forward our country and democracy would not be so compromised.
1
make that "imaginary" Russian influence (or is it meddling?) After all, there were those POWERFUL 800,000 Facebook ads!
When one’s own parents take the side of the abuser, what does a girl do after that? Beyond sad.
47
"When one’s own parents take the side of the abuser, what does a girl do after that?"
We trust, if we didn't, life would be impossible. We trust physicians, we must, because they know things we don't and we're all anxious for cures. We regularly question what kids say, we must, because we often don't get the complete truth from kids.
Parents were in the "treatment" room were duped by Nassar. So were investigators from several investigative organizations.
"You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time," said Lincoln. Nassar's reckoning was inevitable, but took too long.
Nassar abused girls, maybe damaging them for a lifetime. Nassar also caused pain to everyone else who trusted him, particularly the kid's parents.
Hindsight tells us that it was stupid to trust this man. It was, but it's also stupid to blame the victims.
The problem is that this predator hid behind his status as a trainer, doctor, world renown for his Olympic credentials. When confronted by athletes, parents, employers, police he did not deny what he did, he stated it was medical. In fact he gave a video to police and FBI of what he did. He told parents what he did and did it in front of them . He may of used a towel or positioned his body, but he had his hands you know where and everyone knew it. He was a master of deceit. His victims would go back time after time feel uncomfortable but did not stop. They did not resist, they did not fight, they did not hit him or kick him. They did not even sue him civilly in court utill he was found with 37,000 photos. We want to blame someone, we want to think that someone should have been smarter. Their are bad people, serial killers, that are smart and brazen and with us everyday. But the sad fact in this case is that there is a lot of blame to go around, from the parents who are star struck, to athletes who push the limit, to money in sports. Let's stop the blame game because much of the blame is in mirror.
55
All they had to do was ask an orthopedist or gynecologist, or use PubMed to conduct a literature search and verify that these are not medical procedures. Local law enforcement, the FBI, MSU, and USAG all have access to this information, as do parents.
I agree! And as a parent and grandparent, I think it's time for the parents of these young athletes--who want their child's success for themselves--to think twice about trading their daughter's innocence for a pile of trophies.
You seem to be blaming the victims. He knew that these children were at an age where they are easy to manipulate. You criticize them for the very thing that they were often praised for, a brave willingness to endure pain in the pursuit of "higher goals." I agree that the parents should have been more distrustful, but how were the kids supposed to know how very wrong it was when everyone was telling them different? Or if in their inexperience they did suspect it, their own shame may have prevented them from speaking out and sacrificing their own mental health and privacy for the sake of protecting others from what they were not even certain was as evil as it was. Judge not.
2
The pattern of cover ups is sad and despicable, but clear: when there's money to be made, the sickest behavior will go unchallenged by those who are best positioned to stop it. I don't know who's sicker--the deranged sex-addict whose insatiable appetite victimized hundreds if not thousands of children or those who stood by and let it happen for the sake of their paychecks. These people need some jail time, too.
18
It is sad that there are so many men in sensitive positions abusing children and women. Has all this perversion started when Playboy had there immoral magazine put on the market. Then many others followed. I hope that America did not have these events during the first part of the 1900's. If these bad magazines are at fault I feel they should close them for the good of society.
2
Be great to have a specific time and place to award blame. Alas, that is not true. This has been going on since men discovered the difference between themselves and women.
Come up to nyc and pay a visit to the Sex Museum. See the devices invented and implemented hundreds of years ago.
It'll be a true education.
Child prostitution was rampant in Victorian England and America. Our founding fathers with indentured servants; look at the history of buried fetus etc. The slaves exploited. Men have been abusing children and women for ever in this country and abroad. Times up.
1
Are you kidding? Men in positions of power abused women and girls long before playboy.
1
Where was local law enforcement? This was a police matter, not for the FBI. This is just part of the effort to discredit the FBI ABD LACKS CONTEXT
16
To thrive healthily and to mature as trusting adults, babies, toddlers, young girls & boys require safety like they do air. It is the responsibility of the adults in their lives is to provide this safety, whether they are 3 months old or 13 years old. Who was working with this monster? Where was the clinic staff? Where were the other clinicians, who have a sworn duty to protect the patient as much as a MD has a sworn duty to do no harm? Who was watching for the mood changes, signs of depression, alterations in behavior patterns? Who stopped to listen, look, speak and ask questions? Where were these girls’ advocates? Have we become so blind that we don’t see what is in front of our noses? Moreover, have we become so blind, distracted and overwhelmed that we don’t see tragedy unfold in front of us? Why are we mute in the face of horror? What are we afraid of to the point of profound and massive negligence?
37
Cannot say strongly enough: Amen. Yes, we are now "Driven to Distraction" - remember that book of, say, 20 years ago?
YES, children need to trust like the air. Thank you so much.
8
It took hundreds of victims, including high profile Olympian patients; and years of investigation by the FBI, a top tier university investigation, the police and a media investigation,to catch Nassar. Which begs the question, how many silent or disbelieved victims are there.
22
I read stories like this, and I think it's a wonder that women and girls do not just go postal. From the report here, it would seem the only immediate recourse to stop other girls from being destroyed.
17
Girls and women do go postal.
Finally people are listening.
Ehehehe. Google Bresha Meadows and see what happens to girls who physically fight back. She was jailed for killing the father who abused her and her mother.
1
A radio host said that Americans, in any scandal, will focus on the perpetrator and not a flawed system. Why are teenage female athletes ever left alone with a male doctor?
39
Because their mother or father left them alone. It’s not complicated.
9
If you read more of the information, the girl's often had their mother's with them, the Dr. was just masterful at hiding what he was doing.
Shamrock and Lee's responses appear to verify the radio host's assertion.
Another high profile case botched by the FBI. They're obviously used to not being held accountable.
12
It seems that people would like to replace the FBI with the KGB. They are probably a lot more efficient.
Oh please stop this haranguing of the FBI. Sure there is lots of room for improvement, but maybe what will satisfy you is for the FBI to put out a list, daily of all the crimes they have thwarted and all the potential horrors they have prevented.
We need to stop throwing the baby out with the bath water. Just stop
Obviously the best outcome would have been to immediately arrest him and stop the abuse and I am not defending this phedophlie and serial sexual child abuser at all however law enforcement has to gather evidence sufficient enough to convict. Remember innocent till proven quilty. Plus with high profile and inter jurisdictions involved in this case care has to be given it’s due process. If too rushed he skates on a technicality and would be free to abuse others. It’s horrible others were abused while a case was biult against him but that is the justice system and not the agents who were working their best under extreme circumstances. Read the whole article not just the headline.
7
You as well confuse the legal standard necessary to establish guilt with the legal standard necessary to begin a criminal investigation.
They are not the same.
Nassar should have been relieved of clinical duties as soon as these allegations were made. Period.
20
Nassar should have been suspended from practice immediately so that the girls can be protected. In this case the culprit is the Gymnastic Organization in their request for the family not to tell anyone. The action of the top executives of the Gymnastic Organizations if not illegal is at least unconscionable, they have become coconspirators with Nasser, adding more victims and furthering the suffering of the girls and their families. Further, I believe this case should have been reported to the American Medical Association, such that his medical license should be suspended and withdrawn. It will no longer be Dr. Lawrence G. Nassar, but prisoner (---).
1
This is not individual abuse, this is institutional crime. Why is it so difficult to prosecute institutional crime in the USA?--the Cathoilc Church, Penn State, boy scouts, elite private schools--the list is endless. Single individuals cannot fight against insitutions--they need law enforcement agencies to protect them, but as this story shows, supposedly protective institutions like the FBI drop the ball.
We need a national effort to protect youngsters from abuse, but that would require national leadership. Australia has just spent 5 years investigating national institutions which have abused children--where is similar effort in USA?
31
The real question to this litany of nasty abuse is who else knew and did nothing to stop this predator from destroying the lives of so many young women.
Sending one man to jail only hides the complicity of all those in the now who turned a blind eye to the destruction of so many promising lives.
10
‘Law enforcement,’ a touching tribute to the Agency now under partisan attack.
Try this. I am old enough to remember Hoover’s years, was in language training at Monterey Language School with Agents returning from Selma who would chortle over the trashing their friends the police had performed on demonstrators as they stood and watched. Heard their stories of always having a handkerchief peaking from their suit pocket as the inside joke for the day they had to wipe their hand before shaking Hoover’s. The Handkerchief was always a marker for me when under surveillance, as professor in Slavic studies and war and civil rights protester, and amused by the clicking sound on my phone at the noise of the end of the eight track tape – not too subtle surveillance.
Would love to think the Agency has moved on but no reason to see it as anything more that what it was – a tool of those in power. In my time that was Hoover and Presidents deferred to him for cause.
1
Ok Devin Nunes, if you want a FBI scandal this is it!
16
Who was running the Justice Department? Who was the Attorney General? Who was the President of the US at this time? They appear to have had more power, more responsibility and more knowledge to put the Defendant behind bars than anybody at Michigan State? So why no outrage? I think we all know the answer.
6
Wait a minute - so this is Obama's fault? Eric Holder's fault? Loretta Lynch's fault? You do realize that the FBI runs tens of thousands of investigations a year, right?
The AG runs the Justice Department, by the way.
9
What is the "answer?"
Why would it be the President of Michigan State be at fault. She was without any power to search, compel testimony, or prosecute. And the biggest penalty she could give the Defendant was to employ him at Michigan State. She couldn’t prevent him from working with gymnasts or any other patient. Of course I know the position of the Attorney General, it was made in jest to prove that if it was a Republican AG and President, they would be blamed. The comments on this site prove that.
He got away with using his techniques because people rarely confront doctors. We put them on pedestals. The gender of the doctor does not matter. This article is extremely disturbing because everybody did as they were told and that was to shut up. Then when girls and parents did finally speak up, the system dragged on for well over a year allowing others to become victims. I understand the accused certainly has equal rights. We would all want that for ourselves if accused. This doctor should have been removed pending an investigation so that he could not harm others if guilty. His pay should have continued during investigation. We must realize the accused will incur legal bills to defend oneself. Accusations can ruin lives. Again, imagine it happening to you. This case blew up because commonsense, and the well being of these girls was ignored. The grownups failed the girls.
24
Kinda like the way FBI directors are put on a pedestal.
6
Blue code in scrubs?
1
The whole system of American intercollegiate athletics is corrupt. Men playing football are exposed to brain and knee injuries. Soccer players suffer concussions doing head shots. Female gymnasts perform nearly naked and are sexually abused. At most American universities, coaches are paid more than the president and much more than the top professors. American universities collectively lose $20 billion each year competing with each other for TV contracts.
Intercollegiate athletics should be downsized to intramural sports, and all students should be invited to play them.
41
Kevin Cahill is expressing the right ideas, and ones I've advocated for fifty years. Few suggestions I ever bring up in discussion get more hostile reactions than those regarding an over emphasis on our sports. It's really quite impressive. It's been clear that football and soccer cause brain threatening injuries as a matter of cumulative course for some time, and deny, deny, deny, has been the general reaction up and down the line, until the data and tools (MRI's particularly) just overwhelmed the wishful thinking - and still - our societies embrace what alternatives? Extreme martial arts? Snow boarding. I mean, come on!
18
@Kevin Cahill:
I've yet to see any gymnasts -- male or female -- perform nearly naked.
The news reports seem to emphasize Nasser’s use of ungloved hands. If he had worn gloves, would this make his penetrating the gymnasts any less criminal and abusive? Many of the young women stated that Nasser was obviously aroused during the treatments.
Let’s hope that major changes are put in place so that no athlete has to suffer like this again.
11
Well, in its defense, the FBI was very busy with Russia.
16
Hook, line, and sinker
2
Russia? Trump wasn't even in office yet.
7
It took how took how many years to land this predator in jail? There were numerous complaints and no action taken for years? The US Gymnastics governing body has a lot to answer for here.
17
The whole US and international Olympics Committee will not come out of all this at all well. And who is anyone kidding? Did they really perceive the problem was just Romania and Nadia? Figure Skating? Sports and sex culture? Who is going to obsess over such areas? Athletes, yes, and? Add in lots of money, sponsors, and product, and all the ingredients are there for corruption and systematic denial. It will not be an easy knot to untangle and doubtful they will - anymore than they wanted ever to 'clean up gambling on football pools or the horses.'
5
The oversight of the national staff, to establish safe and reasonable environments for the gymnasts, their doctors, their training, should be evaluated. New standards should be established, that provide gymnasts being able to provide how they are being treated from within. The culture, professionalism and conduct require this.
5
Yes, but these girls were treated "within." I want to know how the male athletes were treated.
4
My guess is they wanted to keep it out of the news. And they did. I read about it on a British news site many months before it was adequately covered in the MSM here.
10
Wish I remembered the source but via Twitter someone leaked the papers with the rules that the gymnasts and their parents must follow to be on the national team. The agreement stipulates that the parents and gymnasts basically relinquish control and hand it over to the coaches and national staff. A gymnast is seen and not heard- stands at attention like a soldier and does what she's told, suffering in silence. And you don't tattle to Mommy and Daddy, especially when Mommy and Daddy are forking over 6 figures a year to help make your Olympic dream come true. It's all completely messed up!
58
Well, that would mean Feds intentionally let those girls go through the ordeal in order to... have the case crystal clear out there? Isn’t that enough that you see the ship approaching an iceberg to make you alarm the crew or you just sit there and wait for the catastrophe to have a proof? Is it the choice between efficiency and morality or morality and sheer stupidity?
14
If this is how the FBI handles matters "with such urgency," using the excuse that they couldn't figure out jurisdiction (did they even try?) while girls were still be being abused, I'm gonna need someone to explain what makes them "the world's premier law enforcement agency." Seems like the local Michigan cops who pulled a search warrant and got their hands on Nassar's cache of child porn as soon as they got a complaint outclassed the feds pretty handily.
39
Sexual assault is not a federal crime, its a state crime. The FBI in this situation was simply assisting with the coordination between all state and local agencies.
7
Unfortunately local Michigan police failed to respond appropriately to reports of abuse in 2004 and 2014. Both “investigations” found no wrongdoing and involved talking to Nassar and believing him in 2004 and talking to Nassar and several of his close friends and colleagues and believing them in 2014. No outside experts interviewed. The Michigan police only got it right after the story broke open in the press.
10
All I know about Mr. Nassar's acts of abuse is what I have read online. That included one sentence in one Times article that there is a legitimate form of treatment involving a physical therapist inserting his hand into the vagina. A quick search substantiated that, referring to a treatment known as pelvic therapy, which superficially seems similar to what Nassar was doing. If that might have complicated this case for the FBI, I would like to know that.
4
If that delayed the case by more than 5 minutes, there was an obvious disregard for reasonable medical standards. They literally bent over backwards and did flips for Nassar,
Such treatments do exist, in very, very rare situations, with full patient knowledge and consent.
They are not indicated for ordinary back pain, and would never be done on teenagers.
They are provided only by female therapists, always with gloves, and a chaperone.
13
Notice: only when LA FBI office got involved, the ball actually got rolling.
4
Why are the Karolyi's silent? What is going on with these high profile coaches who could be helpful now -- or are they involved in the abuse as well? They enjoyed being the spokespeople for decades -- now the sports in trouble and they are nowhere.
35
It's a sick culture and has been for a long time. The Karolyis were abusers in their own right. https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/larry-nassar-just-beginning-gymnas...
12
so - like the UK -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Savile_sexual_abuse_scandal - where everyone knew something but he was such a money-spinner that no-one did anything to stop him
or Alabama - where conservatives would rather vote for a pedophile than a democrat
it seems we humans remain sadly tribal - support us while attacking them - and willingly overlook evil in our midst as long as we are profiting from it.
I like the thought that it takes one person to make a difference - while everyone else is 'too busy' or 'doesn't want to get involved' or 'doesn't want to upset the applecart' - the one person who stands up and says 'no - this is not alright - I'm going to do something about it' - pushes on the boulder, it takes a long time, but slowly someone comes to help, slowly it starts to move, slowly it starts to roll, and when it builds momentum, it crushes everything in its path.
All because that one person stood up.
Be that one person - for good.
13
Sounds like many people in charge had failed these young ladies in this horrific crime of sexual assault. The innocent gymnasts were the brave one to continue their training in gymnastics with the dream of becoming a champion inspite of such emotional damaging consequence of being assaulted by Nasser.
America must revamp many systems to prevent this horror in its astounding dimension and scope, the victims numbered over 200 without recourse for so long. 1) Schools must have girl health and sex education to inform young girls about their bodies, its privacy and how to protect it by recognizing inappropriate touching from any man. And, they should be encouraged to inform a person in authority, parents, teachers, etc. Never keep quiet or have self doubt. Keeping telling until the icky feeling gets acknowledged.2) Parents, witness out go to law enforcement immediately and do not let time pass without action. 3) FBI and police should simplify it process. For those girls who are unwilling to be interviewed, police and FBI can offer review behind a screen because of the special circumstance. Gov't must set a time limit for investigation and must treat child molesting cases different from other criminal cases in that young girls should be given more credence.I ask people of conscience to not sit back when we notice changes in a girls behavior or emotion. Ask, ask and ask gently, and take action. Let this Nasser sexual abuse be the very last one until the end of earth.
8
With so many victims, one might think some district attorney could have picked up on at least one complaint and made a case? Evidently, ordinary citizens can't expect justice when no one dies and big money is not involved.
4
Hate to say it, but the investigation here isn’t a whole lot different than any other related to the abuse or harassment of women. Women and girls are second class citizens in this country, and that’s being generous.
43
After reading the article, I find it troubling that the title appears to place the blame on the FBI for not taking steps to prevent Nassar from interacting with any female athletes under USA Gymnastics guidance. The article makes it abundantly clear that multiple jurisdictions were involved, that the Indianapolis office did not have the case for long given that some of the allegations had taken place in Texas and Michigan and Ms. Maroney lived in California. The FBI also made it clear that they have to determine if crimes had taken place and that both the accusers and accused have rights to privacy in that regard.
I would have liked to have seen the article provide enough context to decide if the FBI actually dragged their feet or if they followed standard procedures and if there were sufficient resources available when needed.
The most important point regarding the victims is that USA Gymnastics and the training staff had the primary and very clear duty to place distance between a potential serial abuser and potential victims. The article says that Nassar's procedures involved placing his fingers in the rectums and vaginas of the victims, such that one girl in the article said that Nassar was known among the girls as the "butt doctor". There were multiple complaints over a long period.
How could that have not set off loud alarms with staff and management? They did not need to wait to take separative action while waiting for the criminal investigation to finish.
49
It's telling that Rachael Denhollander, assaulted at age 15 by Nassar w/ her mom in the room, later trained as an attorney, began to "meticulously assemble a criminal prosecution case file" (120 pages) over 10 years .... waiting for the opportunity to be believed ... Believing that w/o media support and accompanying public outrage her case would never make it to trial.
If you've not yet read about Denhollander // IndyStar after "USAG Coach Reporting Scandal" appears, proffering "material information" on the team doctor ... try IndyStar "Out of Balance" for the complete series. riveting reading, in part almost like a Grisham novel and RD victim impact statement as well.
15
Nassar convinced the victims' own parents the children were lying about him; one father killed himself when he finally realized the truth of how he had betrayed his daughter by siding with her predator. USAG knew and ignored, as did Michigan State, as did at least one private gym. The FBI didn't initiate interviews until 294 days after hearing the first reports.
All of this tells us there was a system in place to protect the abuser and to gaslight and silence the victims. It's not surprising, given the misogynistic culture we inhabit. We can expect a number of these girls and women to have trust issues given how completely many of them were failed by those entrusted to keep them safe and healthy. If there's any good to come of it, parents will believe their kids and will refuse to accept, "Don't worry, we're handling it" from anyone.
8
All legitimate questions, David, but could we trust this administration to make a fair and impartial investigation of the FBI? Or, would it use the situation to bash the FBI for its own selfish, partisan aims? It's not difficult to see a parallel between Nassar violating girls and Trump violating our democratic institutions.
3
But it is not OK to doubt FBI, is it?
13
Really?!? No one in this unbelievable case who had oversight, supervision or responsibilities for this monster or directly observed him in his work did not do their due diligence as he “treated” hundreds of teenaged girls by inserting bare fingers into them? What would you have immediately questioned if you had viewed a video of the “doctor” at work? Why beat up on the FBI when there had to be dozens of US Gymnastics and University officials, trainers, parents and others who should have seen and questioned the obvious? I’m not buying their repeated assertions that they had “no idea”. Either they were plain stupid or consumed with competitive and celebrity arrogance pushing their daughters and athletes for selfish glory. Either way, I see an incredible amount of fault and liability with all of them.
30
The FBI deserves criticism for not getting started on an investigation for 294 days. If they were unable to adequately and promptly sort out jurisdiction issues, despite the "urgency" they claim to have felt, they should have referred the complainants to an agency that could. Seems like the Michigan local cops who got a search warrant just in time to collect Nassar's filth-filled hard drive were far more effective than what we're told is the nation's premier law enforcement agency. USAG, Michigan State and Twistars bear a lot of responsibility because they were told of abuses and failed to act. Nassar is such a twisted individual that he sexually violated athletes with their mothers right in the room. He convinced parents their daughters were liars. About the only ones who come out looking good are the athletes who managed to perform at the highest levels despite their repeated victimization.
8
I am with you HK. I see greed for money, power, and fame writ large over this whole thing. The betrayal by the Gymnastic organizations and the coaches doesn't surprise me. Their own ambitions are always paramount. But the parents acquiescence? That disturbs me the most. They are in the room talking to this pervert while their child is molested? This is reprehensible. I have an image of a parent enraged, immediately stopping the exam,standing up for her daughter and making a huge issue about it to said authorities no matter what the outcome. These are kids for Pete sakes.
As for the FBI. Forget it. They are not the fast moving , defenders of justice they like to pretend they are.
3
Sexual assault is not a federal crime, its a state crime. The FBI in this situation was simply assisting with the coordination between all state and local agencies. Use your brain.
4
We are a flawed and criminal society. You notice, in another article in this paper, that three law-enforcement folks took down the father of one of "Dr. Larry's" victims instantly when he tried to get to the man who had for years hurt his child. But it was decades before that monster himself was stopped. I wish the mother who was told to keep quiet and had gone right then to the newspapers. It might have saved a few other children. But - it's sports, like the movies, a discipline soaked in money . . . I'm so disgusted I can't stand it.
14
Education is the way to end this kind of predation. Our society is so averse to sex education that 15 year old girls don’t know when they are being molested and are unable to articulate what the predator has done to them. Parents are so afraid of talking about sex they don’t ask questions. The only thing worse than sex education is NO sex education. That is what predators like Nassar count on, again and again.
68
Perhaps the erstwhile FBI leadership was more interested in going after the president than protecting the innocent victims.
6
poll this week showed only 60% Americans had "no confidence" in FBI. McCabe, FISA, and this are good for another 25% rise.
7
FBI? The Edgar Hoover run organization that stalked Dr. Martin Luther King in search of blackmail worthy information? How many murders of Black children were under pursued or unsolved on their watch? This pedophile physician is the mere tip of an iceberg. His is a racist profession; racism and misogynism are members of the same Lodge as xenophobia and pedophilia. Trump, a multi offender under these sub headings is just bringing his brothers and sisters home to roost in the J. Edgar Hoover household. It's not a good sight and probably smells worse. There is always a price to be paid for misdeeds. One never knows where or when but that is how the Universe is tilted. White males eating each other. Wow!!
If we were a 'nation state' like most in the western world, then the jurisdictional squabbles and red tape would be minimized. Still, the federal authorities, FBI to be exact, have their original mission disproportionately weighted toward stopping terrorism, to the detriment of old-fashion gumshoe domestic detective work.
6
Why are all of these MEN representing young girls in this sport? It's time for these elite gymnasts to take on leadership roles and run the organization themselves. After all, they really know what it feels like to compete, have injuries and spend countless hours practicing.
47
Anyone notice:
Republicans and their MSM are saying "The Surveillance system was abused by a few bad Clinton apples but the system is legitimate and the FBI needs no reform."
Democrats and their MSM are saying "The surveillance system was abused by a few bad Trump apples. The system is legitimate, the FBI needs no reform."
Funny how the one BI-Partisan element of this discussion from both parties and their mainstream media mouthpieces is to FIREWALL the system that is being abused for political purposes from increased oversight and reform.
Isn't it interesting how Trump or Clinton may end up getting burned but the firewall in the discussion will leave the Mass Domestic Surveillance state untouched. Were all getting played.
1
The people contributing their ideas to this discussion are NOT:
“discussion from both parties and their mainstream media mouthpieces”.
The contributors are individuals, free from party leadership and from being association to mainstream media mouthpieces.
2
It will be relevant and interesting to know as soon as legally possible and appropriate how many female police officers and/or FBI investigators either participated or offered to participate in Nassar's case and at what point in the investigation such participation occurred.
6
Since when has the FBI or any law enforcement organization been responsible for medical treatment protocols and the supervision and documentation of procedures and treatments performed by doctors in the employ of hospitals, universities and organizations? Let’s lay the blame squarely where it belongs.
10
You seem to be suggesting the very thing many athletes and parents did: Report wrongdoing to USAG, Michigan State, and Twistars. It's tragic those organizations didn't care enough about the girls to stop their monster. They were also complicit in quietly passing coaches with histories of sexual assault on to the next gym.
If the FBI, or any law enforcement agency, receives reports of a crime and isn't capable of properly investigating it, whether that be due to Jared from Subway or a mystifying inability to understand jurisdiction, they should promptly inform the victim of a superior alternative. Local PDs would seem to fit that bill.
2
This is like asking where was Julia Child when a restaurant cook purposely poisoned diners. When crimes are committed, law enforcement is the correct venue for justice.
Sorry, but i would NEVER let my daughter alone in room with a male doctor. Ever. Men simply cannot be trusted. I dont have a single male doctor and I am 56. The judgment of some of the parents is a little shaky. These are VERY young girls being treated alone? I dont get it.....
15
Many girls were sexually violated with their mothers in the room. Nassar is a master manipulator who positioned himself and his victims in such ways that the mothers could not see exactly where his hands were. He's a deviant who no doubt took extra pleasure in sexually assaulting them in their parents' presence, just as he enjoyed convincing the parents that when their daughters complained about his methods, they were lying.
6
did you read any of the articles? oftentimes a parent was in the room with them. except when they were away at the training camp in texas, no parents were allowed at that center.
2
"But everyone is still trying to ascertain whether a crime has been committed. And everybody has rights here.” No, the FBI did not afford everyone rights - those who were abused while FBI investigators were squabbling over who owned the case were not afforded any protections. FBI or police may not have had reason to arrest Nasser then - but they didn't have to wait until they had evidence sufficient to convict him of a crime before acting.
The FBI left children in danger for over a year: there's no acceptable reason for that. And as for suggesting that It took 11 months to figure out that Nasser techniques were BS and that he was molesting his patients - the FBI couldn't figure out how to access an expert in a day? In hours? The FBI?
Also inexplicable: not making that first sensitive interview with Ms. Maroney in person. IF there was an internal argument over ownership of the case - venue -whoever had it up front ought to have done the damn interview, or made sure that it was done, in more like 24 hours. What about using police in California? What of the "cooperation and coordination" which was supposed to be established post 9/11?
There seems to have been no single entity who was assigned full responsibility for follow through, who recognized the urgency and risk to other patients. It looks like it might have been better for early reports to have been made to the local police in the different places where Nasser "practiced."
This was a bizarre failure.
26
In the end it was local cops who got their hands on Nassar's cache of child porn, and a local paper that broke the story of abuse.
3
Unfortunately local Michigan cops failed survivors multiple times long before this got to the FBI. Local police received reports of abuse in 2004 and 2014, and both times found no evidence of wrongdoing. Their investigations consisted primarily in talking to Nassar and then taking his word for it. They only acted appropriately once this was all over the press.
7
@cheryl: What was the FBI supposed to do? It could not arrest or charge him until the investigation was completed and a case that would hold up in court was made against him. You'll notice that Nassar was very successfully prosecuted and he is going to jail for 175 years. That is in part thanks to the FBI, which built a watertight case against him.
The FBI had no authority to fire Nassar. Only the institution he worked for could have fired or disciplined him, and that is where the system broke down. The program should have placed him on leave, or suspended him, or transferred him to a position where he could not come into contact with female patients, while the investigation was ongoing. Why this was not done is the real mystery.
This is the fault of people like Penny, who simply wanted to hush it all up and make it go away. Instead, the USA Gymnastics program had other medical "experts" -- friends of Nassar -- testify that his procedures were legitimate medical treatments. With so much institutional pushback, it is no wonder that the FBI made slow headway.
USA Gymnastics should be broken up and reorganized. And we need to cut the FBI some slack. It must comply with myriad complex laws, and it also has a duty to protect the rights of suspects, as well as the rights of victims.
1
Once again our beloved FBI is disparaged.
5
Because they're beyond reproach in this case?
3
Alas, J Edgar Hoover must be weeping in his grave.
1
And people wonder, why women in the US have stopped getting pap smears.
Kind of obvious.
15
What does that even mean? Nassar wasn’t a gynogolist! Get a grip on yourself.
11
It should also be noted that in this post-9/11 world the vast majority of resources at the FBI have been redirected to counter-terrorism and all other duties are running on skeleton crews on skeleton budgets. When you fight the Islamic boogeyman, there is little left over to protect us from the monsters in our midst.
This is the country we created for ourselves, allowed our politicians to create for us with the help of a compliant, if not supportive, media.
Add to that those who will protect a monster for personal/institutional interests, like all the institutions that covered for him, that shipped him around like a catholic priests get shipped around, the FBI is the last one on the list I will blame. It was more important to those in charge that the US win medals under the training direction of a monster that molested these girls, than to protect them. It was more important to other institutions that he put their organization on a pedestal; the price paid was acceptable. They all KNEW who they employed.
This is how wife beaters and child abusers in sports, politics, religion and industry get away with it, because people give them cover. Because until somebody steps up to the plate and yells it from the mountain top, people prefer to be complicit. They are okay with an athlete beating his wife as long has he carries the ball in the end zone. They are okay with a trainer molesting girls as long as they keep performing.
29
What was going on with FBI foot-dragging? This must be investigated.
6
When you are a parent and a child says she wants you to be with her while the Dr. is examining her I wonder if she asked her why that is? Very peculiar to say the least.
9
Agreed. Why did all these parents behave so obtusely? They were so star struck they didn't even notice that their child was being molested while they watched? And now they're outraged? Part of me puts the blame on them as well.
8
And as a parent you don't know that a foot injury doesn't require a pelvic exam? Really so the mothers think your foot bone is connected to your pelvic? They just wanted a payoff from gymnastics for their hard work, time and money
6
I am a female who accompanies my 50+ husband during Dr's visits when they are atypical - for support and as a second set of ears to listen to and
understand what the doctor and other medical professionals discuss with him. I think it is also comforting to him that I am there. He also does the same for me. I would think that a teenager would absolutely need this same support and it therefore would ( should/hopefully ) head off any possible abuse. This is not to say that the parents did anything wrong, as I am sure they were likely discouraged to accompany their daughters into the exam. Sadly, people give much too much respect to Doctors who are are nonetheless human, fallible, and more than capable of such atrocities.
1
The Lawrence Nassar case is a perfect example of sexual assault by fraud. More specifically, he used "fraud in the factum," deception about the nature of the act, to engage in sexual contact. Deception regarding the actor is called "fraud in the inducement."
Similarly, two recent cases of sexual assault by fraud in the factum were reported in Massachusetts. Dr. Ho Yin Aaron Shiu was tried when two patients alleged his sexual groping during medical examinations. But shortly after, Prosecutor Marian Ryan failed to prosecute Dr. Roger Hardy when similar allegations were lodged against him. Ms. Ryan incorrectly stated that the women had "consented."
Much of society, including law enforcement make the same mistake Ms. Ryan made. They equate "consent" with "agreement." In fact, consent is a special type of agreement..... Freely Given, Knowledgeable and Informed Agreement #FGKIA. Claiming a person consented when they were defrauded of their agreement is an oxymoron.
Adopting the following language in penal codes across the nation can help prevent all forms of sexual assault and end rape mentality: Non-consensual sex is sexual assault; Consent is Freely Given- Knowledgeable and Informed Agreement.
Call your legislators. Tell them to sign this language into law today, before more innocent live are forever damaged!
15
your comment was very well respected and received. would you be willing to fully explain this all in a petition that many people can sign through some of the online petitions that go around so easily and I'm confident it would become viral and would get a lot of attention. You explain it well at clearly you know what you talking about. I'd be willing to support what you're saying. I hope it goes a lot further than a comment in the times newspaper.
2
Don't you dare start to try and conflate the "affirmative consent" nonsense floating around colleges with the sexual molestation of children and patients in medical procedures.
3
@neal- Consent is hardly "nonsense". It's the key to sexual assaults of all kinds.
The children in Nassar's case could not possibly be construed as "consenting." No child could. But he didn't assault children only. Several of his victims were of age. And the reason their testimony matters is because Nassar violated them by sexually assaulting them by fraud.
I think you'd find it interesting that Nuremberg Code, which is federal law, is very specific that children cannot "consent" but can only "assent" to medical experimentation.
Missouri's rape in the 2nd degree law is very specific that "assent is not consent when induced by force, duress or deception." and Model Penal Code, which some states use as the basis of their consent provision, states "consent is ineffective if induced by force duress or deception."
Consent is the fundamental basis of all sex crime laws, including what Larry Nassar did to those girls.
3
Participating in sports like this shoud be illegal for kids under 16. These kids become sacrifices for parental ambition. They are all denied any normal kind of growing up. No responsible parent should allow a young boy or girl to be turned into some kind of Gulag sacrifice. For those over 16;always accomaanied by a parent or guradian.- armed with a taser.
22
I think you have no knowledge of or experience with the training of gymnasts. Start at age 16 is idiotic. The flexibility and core strength needed do not develop in a short time. This whole horrible situation has nothing to do with gymnastics training as such. It has to do with the failure of USA Gymnastics, the OSOC, the FBI, Michigan State athletics department directors, and Twistars owners and head coaches to take their athletes' complaints seriously. It especially takes the PHYSICIANS on the board of USAG to stand up and refute the idiotic and venal descriptions of Nassar's bogus "treatments" activities. What he did had no medical value, besides being statutory rape. I was a gym mom, a coach, and a USAG certified Junior Olympics Judge. When the ONE case of a coach running off with his under age gymnastics student came to light, his name was plastered up for all to see: membership in USAG revoked, and he was blackballed from coaching in our state again. I thought this showed the system to protect our youngsters was working. I had no idea of the massive failure. P.S. My daughter competed through graduate school, and gymnastics taught her many useful skills for living in the real world. So please do not blame the sport.
5
I am sure both internal and external forces were there to stall FBI investigation of a such wide-spread sex abuses case by Dr. Nassar. I do not believe our FBI agents are so incapable and incompetent to uncover the truth in such a long time. Find out those who internally and externally blocked FBI investigation in this case. Put them on trail, too.
15
Child sex abuse case just seem to take so long to investigate! Look at how long the FBI spends on child pornography cases, in order to get a conviction, yet once they know of a case they are on it big time.
Had U.S.A. Gymnastics, Michigan State University done the right thing and legal thing and notified law enforcement immediately, Dr. Nassar would have been stopped sooner.
If there is anything positive in this whole evil mess, it's that prisoners don't like child molesters!
13
The enormity of the failure of everyone involved, from the FBI to the gymnastics org is a disgrace. I have 2 daughters now grown. During their school years 2 different men we knew were exposed and sent to jail for sex with middle schoolers. In one of the cases it was my daughter who reported the abuse of one of her friends and stopped the abuse. In that case, action was taken immediately. Nothing she has done has made me prouder. As a middle schooler she put a stop to an abuser.
Please tell me why these grownups do not have the sense or bravery of my then 13 year old daughter?
48
FBI not winning any medals in my book,
Randall Mangraves did the right thing. At least his daughters saw an adult defending them. Too bad the security had to stop him.
14
Yeah, remember when Kerri Strug did a vault in 1996 with a broken ankle and America cheered because it was "patriotic"? Now, we wonder where this "culture of abuse" came from.
65
And she did go to Nassar to have him try to fix it so she could compete in vault finals. It's in her memoir, "Landing on My Feet" which I've read.
3
Let's face everyone is to blame, what people will do for a piece of gold.
What to send a statement STOP watching the Olympics it's just one big fraud and scam. From the people who run this scam taking payoff from cities to host the games, to judges and their games and the athletes what a mess the steroid cheating bunch for what, a piece of gold.
No thanks, I would watch a second of this scam, nor will I support the sponsor who are just as much to blame,
14
This sordid affair should be put in context.
People should know that Nassar is an Osteopath, who trained at an Osteopathic School of Medicine. He is a DO and not an MD. The Osteopaths separate themselves from mainstream medical schools by their use of manipulation to take care of musculoskeletal problems. The "cutting edge" massage interventions that Nassar initiated apparently included something he invented called "intra-vaginal adjustment."
All doctors are NOT created equal.
Yes, it is amazing that Nassar lasted as long as he did.
17
So, you're implying that the double-tiered system whereby DOs are lesser than MD and somehow less-qualified by virtue of their schools of matriculation means that MDs should NOT have been monitoring and questioning Nassar's approach when it was brought to their attention?? Oh, right... NOW I get it. Smug much?
2
I wonder if Nasser is prosecutable under the Mann act. Did he have children brought to him across state lines for his molestation. Even if he tricked the parents, he should be prosecuted.
6
Please! We live in a culture where abuse is rampant. Child Abuse, sexual abuse, subordinate abuse, client abuse. I am sorry. Open your eyes. We rely on shock appeal to govern the rise in potential of a person in a leadership role. Remember Steve Jobs? His entire portfolio was his penchant for recklessness, myopia and his immoral humiliation of other people. Steve Jobs "brand" is celebrated for disrespect and indifference.
We are shocked by "intravaginal" adjustment? Everyone of you has seen a co-worker or colleague humiliated by a superior and said nothing. It's the same for child Abuse, sexual abuse, subordinate abuse. We know it exists. We see it but we fail to act out of fear we will become the victim or the excuse for lack of law enforcement. Our children, girls, wives, innocents but us too suffer in silence. Abuse is ubiquitous with a hierarchy of power. We hope we are not it's next victim. If we complain the consequences are more severe then the original crime.
Then we imagine, hope - deny it ever happened. Ask yourself how could priests sexually abuse generations of children without fear? How do bosses get away with years of Harvey Weinstein, rape and humiliating sexual abuse? Years?
It's not just denial. It's refusal to take on systemic abuse. Child abuse cannot be tolerated. If it takes a purge, so be it. Sexual abuse and humiliation cannot be tolerated. The purge has started. Do not give into this immoral horror! President Trump must go!
15
Our culture of complicity with sexual abuse is exposed. I hope this exposure emboldens all to speak out against all abusers.
3
Moms- please think about calling the police if this happens to you or your kids. And there are loads of amazing female doctors out there as well to consider...wishing these families peace and healing.
14
What was Michigan State doing with the information they had about the abuse? They hide this abuse like Penn State did on Joe Paterno and Jerry Sandusky.
13
I hope the FBI is working on that too.
2
A few observations:
1. It was an investigative report by a newspaper, The Indianapolis Star, that kicked the case into high gear. It's important to subscribe to newspapers. We need them.
2. The girls and women were confused by the situation when it was happening because the doctor was endorsed and protected by institutions that were supposed to have their best interests at the core.
3. When traumatized girls and women do speak up --if they are not outright ignored--the reaction by institutions and law enforcement is excruciatingly slow, lacks urgency and undervalues their reports.
This is why I am sick and tired of the back-lash calling the #metoo movement a "witch hunt." Look what happens when we play by the rules.
I am angry.
I live paycheck to paycheck and that extra $25 in my paycheck due to the Trump tax cut is a meaningful amount to me. But not meaningful enough to allow these self-righteous smirkers, compulsive liars and sycophants from Trump on down to flush my dignity down the toilet. And yes, Trump, the molester in chief who supported a pedophile in Alabama does have everything to do with this. He and his minions built a wall alright. They built it around themselves and anyone who acts like them. I will put that extra $25 to good use by donating it to campaigns against these mostly Republican creeps. I wonder what the 1% will do with their billions of dollars in tax cuts?
233
May I ask just one, simple question?
As there are already 265 victims who "stepped forward", it is clear that there are (many) more there who (for whatever reason, some of them you mentioned) didn't do so and there are decades of these criminal behavior taking place .... we have thousands of instances when ...
parental (in great majority, for whatever reasons maternal) "6th sense for spotting a danger" was absent or blinded. Blinded by what? By statistically improbable chance in fame and fortune for their gymnastics daughters?
2
Refugee, women don't have a "sixth sense for spotting danger" that is superior to or different from men's "sixth sense." But I do think that it's possible that people (women OR men) who have been abused or in danger may be able to spot the signs more easily than those who haven't been abused, in some cases.
I don't know the parents of these children and wouldn't presume that they would put their child in harm's way.
Your theory of the parents being blinded by the desire for fame and fortune doesn't make sense. The abuse made the athletes suffer which couldn't have been good for their success as gymnasts if that is what you're getting at. If anything, based on your theory, these parents would have been hyper-alert for anything that caused a decline in their daughter's performance and well-being. Predators count on being shielded by the trust placed in them: a trust that isn't based in their person, but is rather based on their role in an institution, in a society, in a community, in a school, in a church, in a family, etc.
4
Nice try but I'm not buying it. The parents are accountable. Parents who put the welfare of their child first, and not their own ambitions, do have a sixth sense.
2
I am astounded at the seemingly lack of concern by officials.
There are no credible institutions- private or public- anymore.
It appears- appears- that USA Gymnastics and the FBI were running out the clock hoping victims would give up.
Shameful. We have completely given up on enforcing the law against entire segments of our population. Hundreds of rapes while our officials tried their best to ensure no accountability.
7
While I am not exactly surprised by seeming lack of concern by officials (as most of top level sports are marked by very unhealthy or worse atmosphere in desire for success at any cost)
I wonder what on those thousands upon thousands of these "doc exams" (as we have 265 identified victims plus many other didn't - yet - stepped forward) blinded Moms' (as for whatever reasons there were in great majority mothers, not fathers, taking them to practice or exams) blinded them not to notice that something might be badly wrong?
The supposed female or maternal "sense for spotting a danger", that so many, even in comments here, refer to was not present or overridden by the mentioned desire for fame and fortune?
2
Why not blame no anyone here. But why not just go directly to the police ? Why “let” that gymnastics group handle this?
3
Here is an example of a real scandal at the FBI rather than the trumped up story Devin Nunes and the Republicans are promoting to protect the malfeasance of the President. You don't hear a peep out of Trump over this though.
32
Could the New York Times kindly look into the Karolyis? Where are they hiding? Why aren't they speaking? They and USA Gymnastics are synonymous even though they are now retired. They were at the very top of all this, authorizing the "treatments" by Nassar and isolating the gymnasts on their god-forsaken ranch. And remember that the reason these girls were seeking out Nassar in the first place is because they were in a great deal of physical and emotional pain, largely made possible by Marta Karolyi (and before her, Bela). This whole "medals above all" was their doing - remember that Team USA was not a winning one before they came along and struggled when they stepped down after 1996 (see 2000 Olympics) at which point they were begged to come back. They need to be brought into the spotlight for the role they played in making Nassar possible, and for their emotional and physical abuse of the gymnasts over more than 3 decades.
64
Did this man treat any young men? We've never heard from any of them. HOW did this man develop such a reputation for healing? Whom did he heal and how was he able to obtain such a prestigious position? What on earth did he do to get such a sought-after reputation?
5
Please stop.
1
Let's redirect funds and efforts from hard-working immigrants and go after the real criminals: the coaches and their enablers - university presidents, do-nothing boards, US Olympic leaders, all making big salaries while turning a blind eye.
8
To start, with no extra outlays of taxpayer money:
Let's not have parents be blinded by (statistically very low) chances for fame and fortune via sports championships or Olympics medals.
1
Arrest prosecute and sentence any FBI agent who knew but did not act to prevent further child molestation. NOW
12
This is difficult to read.
7
Yet, across the nation, millions of Moms will continue to put (mostly false and naive) hopes into their daughters fame and fortune by gymnastics etc.
While millions of fathers will continue to do the same with their sons, hoping they became football "pros".
2
Molestation is the term for any sexual abuse of a child. He raped them, just to be clear.
10
When I was 14, my mother's hairdresser walked around me while he was doing my hair, rubbing his erect penis against me at shoulder and breast level. I thought this was something he had to do because erections were a normal state for men, so of course I didn't tell my mother.
Then my boyfriend put my hand there, and ultimately blamed it on me.
Men will get away with this stuff until young girls are warned and encouraged to talk. I kept the lines open for my daughter, but when she reported an incident, and I told her school, nothing was done. I felt a second generation of powerlessness.
21
If the FBI is heavy-handed they are criticized as big brother is watching and if they are cautious they are accused of being complicit. Whatever is the word that comes to mind. I am glad that we have an FBI and it is better than the KGB or Hitler's SSA. Get over yourselves people.
7
The FBI should be criticized when criticism is warranted. Because of their delay, more women were molested and if they are half the professional organization they should be, they will take this criticism to heart and restructure their policies and procedures for cases like this.
The FBI doesn't get a pass as a law enforcement agency because it did something right yesterday or the day/year before, and they're doing something wrong today. Just because you think the FBI is better than the KGB (a low standard to have, I might add), it doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement. Women's wellbeing were at risk here and these women will never be the same.
5
“There is a duty to warn those who might be harmed in the future,” he said. “But everyone is still trying to ascertain whether a crime has been committed. And everybody has rights here”
“there was a vigorous debate going on about whether this was a legitimate medical procedure.”
Right there --> proof positive these institutions run by men have *no clue*.
Inserting your fingers into the vagina of any 10 year old, never mind dozens of them, after allegations of abuse against older girls - this warranted a year of investigation - ?
It is amazing how deep the cultural programming that equates women and girls with sex, and views them as lacking agency over their own body runs.
43
How does a broken ankle or muscle or sprained ligament translate to a pelvic exam? Did the men get a prostate exam when they sprained their ankle? Any person who said there was vigorous confusion about the exam needs to ge slapped up side the head. Ask any man do they get a prostate exam when they go to the doctor for a cold?
3
Based on this article and the following passage, how far up the food chain did the investigation go within the FBI?
The agency left unaddressed the oft-repeated claim by U.S.A. Gymnastics officials that after initially presenting the sexual assault allegations to the F.B.I. in July 2015, they came away with the impression that federal agents had advised them not to discuss the case with anyone. The ensuing silence had dire consequences, as the many girls and young women still seeing Dr. Nassar received no warning.
Wasn't James Comey the Director of the FBI under under Loretta Lynch as the AG (Lynch's term April 27, 2015 – January 20, 2017)
5
Comey handed Trump his presidency on a silver platter the day he stated Clinton's emails were suspect 10 days before the election and now you lump Comey and Loretta Lynch as being negligent in the Nassar case. Now I have heard it all, as the saying goes.
4
Comey did not hand over the election over to President Trump... the everyday person voted for him did where it mattered because Hillary Clinton assumed all these voters would vote for her...
But you can believe what you wish it is the United States...
Meanwhile, on other pages of the NY Times, we read that the FBI is a pillar of our democracy. Defending an agency that has caused so much turmoil wile failing to protect will slow the process of getting it back on track. These girls deserved better.
10
I hope this scandal shows parents that young girls should have female doctors and that nurses should be present at all times. I have never been alone with a male doctor-even my dermatologist has a nurse in the room at all times. Women can't trust any man they do not know well, or even some they think they know, and that is the sad but simple truth.
22
Yes, they can trust some men. There are some trustworthy men out there. We just need to learn which ones are the trustworthy ones. How to do that? Teach children about what sexual assault is, and that they can come and talk with us about *anything*. And give people enough trust and credit to believe them enough to look into any sort of reports when they say something happened. And on a larger scale, work to end abuse in all forms, even if you have to self-identify as a feminist to do it.
6
If we take at face value that the FBI needed to be sure that the Nasser "treatments" were not in fact medically appropriate but uncomfortable procedures- who would be their guide?
We're the tapes not enough?
71
According to the article (maybe you missed it), all the FBI folks who watched the video knew what he was doing was wrong/illegal.
6
Upon receiving the abuse complaints, the FBI should have immediately contacted both child welfare authorities and the Michigan medical board. It was incumbent upon the FBI. And it is NOT something they can wait to do until making a final determination on the abuse allegations. These authorities have legal duties to first swiftly to stop any further potential abuse when serious allegations are made and only after that to conduct full investigations.
Laws mandate that child-abuse investigators act in a very short time frame -- often just hours -- to conduct an initial inquiry and decide whether to block the alleged perpetrator from further access to children. Then they follow with a complete investigation and final findings.
State medical boards have jurisdiction over doctor's licenses and the FBI should also have contacted the Michigan immediately upon hearing the allegations. The majority of board members of most, and probably all, are doctors and other medical providers. The staff would know which doctors with expertise -- whether a member or in the community -- to judge if Nasser's methods were legitimate. Then they must also act swiftly to take measures, like suspending him from practice, until they can decide on final action.
Such are the authorities the FBI apparently failed to include. The shame is on them.
3
All over the country, rape kits sit unprocessed for years, victims of sexual assault don't bother to report because being involved with law enforcement can feel abusive, extremely low arrest and conviction rates are the norm, "slap on the wrist" sentences cause discouragement, etc., etc.
These cases are almost always difficult to investigate, just because of their nature, and that is exacerbated by multi-jurisdictional issues, as here.
However, a significant problem in many law enforcement agencies and courts is that sexual assault is just not treated as if it is a serious problem, even though it destroys lives.
Our Justice Department under Jeff Sessions appears to be more concerned with what he considers to be lax enforcement of marijuana laws than he is about systemic racism and misogyny in some law enforcement departments and agencies that allows women, children and people of color to be victimized with impunity.
I am not suggesting that is at work here. However, this situation might provide an opportunity for us as a nation to show that each of our citizens has value, and to ensure that our institutions reflect our values.
As has been said, by many people about myriad situations over this past year, "We are better than this." Let's show it.
5
You said this is a situation "us as a nation to show that each of our citizens has value". Really, what country do you live in or are you dealing in alternative facts? In the country the USA, only white ppl are valued if you are part of the top 5%. It might be a nice sentiment but so far from true it is can only be called fantasy.
1
Too many authorities, law agencies, people muddled this and lost multiple opportunities to take action. This isn't one group fumbling this is what happens when help is watered down and decisive action is not pursued. Glad Michigan University police were on target to secure vital evidence. This is one bright spot in this.
U.S.A. Gymnastics group was so concerned with protecting themselves even protecting the rights of Nassar that they weren't protecting the girls and in fact by hobbling them with an admonition to "tell no-one" kept them from getting help maybe finding someone who would report this as child abuse. How many other ways did those individuals turn a deaf ear to children's complaints? We can and should all be horrified that young girls were left in Nassar's clutches while procedures were followed and time passed.
This is hard to read but important reporting. Thank you.
4
The FBI's statement asserting that the sexual exploitation of children “is an especially heinous crime,” and that “the safety and well-being of our youth is a top priority for the F.B.I.” seems to suggest that they ought to pursue such accusations vigorously, does it not?
Meanwhile, as for Nasser, "Given that he has been sentenced to nearly two centuries in prison, Dr. Nassar will likely die there." Let's hope he lives long enough to hate every minute of those two centuries.
1
If the complaints had been filed to the Administration for Children's Service (or its counterparts in other states), would the abuses have been ended sooner? How come there seemed to be no involvement by the any child protection agencies, which have to do investigation within a mandatory time frame (I believe)??? I understand it involves athletes in the national team and so it is sensitive, but this should not have the protection compromised.
5
What happened to the mandatory reporters? Why didn't they notify CPS.
3
It MAY have been because this didn't involve a complaint against the parents. CPS - in general handles direct caretaker issues. This is a parallel to abuse by a teacher, where PS wouldn;t be called n. You'd have to research the laws in effect in the states where this took place.
The mandatory time frame e in NYS? 90 days. But that is for a decisions as to whether there is reason to indicate a case, providing evidence that there was maltreatment. Prosecuting a criminal case requires the DA to determine that there is sufficient evidence to convict But, if there had been serious abuse, that would have been initiated earlier - and using best practices, had law enforcement and CPS coordinating efforts.
If someone I employed had dozens of complaints about sexual abuse, he would not remain actively working while I let law enforcement finish their investigation. The Olympic committee should not have waited for completion of the investigations to protect these girls. FBI investigations take years and waiting for them is not an excuse for inaction.
24
A number of years ago we had recently moved to an office on the west side of manhattan when we received a visit from two FBI guys. They asked a lot of questions about the previous owners of the space, of which we knew not much, thankfully. A few months later we received a visit from two different FBI guys who asked us a lot of questions. But their questions were not about the previous owners. These two guys were investigating the previous 2 FBI guys that had visited several months earlier.
6
Did you ever think that those first two agents weren’t really FBI agents but criminal associates of your building’s former owners whom you were “thankfully” unfamiliar with?
3
Herman,
We don't know. Corruption cases were going on around then.
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/05/nyregion/fbi-employee-admits-stealing-...
Yes, the bigger story even with these horrific cases is how such was able to go on. Its natural to focus on the perp but many failed and the system failed all around.
81
At highest and Olympian levels of sports, like in the Hollywood or media, people who want to "make it big", i.e. championships, Olympic medals, casting in a movie, etc. have been and apparently continue to be willing to tolerate and consider abuse, including sexual abuse, somehow to be a price worthy to pay for such ambitions.
One must especially wonder about these young gymnasts' parents - as yes, sorry to say - mothers (as they tend, statistically speaking, to be the primary providers of parental care, also taking their daughters to practices as well as those apparently horrible "doc visits" and - not due to patriarchy but millennia of common sense life - are parents close to their daughter's sexuality) ... why and how they have been missing or 'missing" all those warning signs of their daughters' abuse.
Than, otherwise supposedly "top quality" FBI, with all its declared and purported highest professional, even human rights and women rights and protection institutional standards, clearly failed here, Repeatedly and for too many months. They too should be under close review and scrutiny, regardless of defense they might habitually use to deflect conflict of interests or bona fide inquiry.
1
Gheeze, why don't you pick on the AMA or the American Pediatric Academy? Afterall, it was one of their own doctors.
1
Apart from the question of how long it took the FBI... We all need to be aware that we should not trust someone blindly, because that opens the door for abuse.
3
Yes, it is important that these abuses be exposed, but I worry that the superheated and almost hysterical atmosphere of much of the proceedings is saddling the victims with undeserved feelings that they are somehow irredeemably tainted, and that they can never be whole again and live normal happy lives. This would be to add further injury in service of our own feelings of righteous indignation.
62
Sometimes indignation is righteous, and some of the victims may never be whole again and live normal happy lives, but the public shaming, condemnation, and sentencing to prison of this sick "doctor" may be cathartic and help to heal their wounds. The secrecy of their abuse doesn't have to be secret anymore. They were criminally assaulted, and he was very, very wrong to have done it.
3
"Hysterical"? These young women apparently wanted to have their voices heard --otherwise they would not have taken the time to go to court to publicly have their say nor would they have agreed to interviews and being photographed. I have no problem with others joining the angry chorus. You think it's "almost hysterical"? You really want to use that term to tell women to keep their voices down? These women aren't tainted --I have seen none of their supporters describe them in this way--and they have their own personal journeys to being whole and happy. Perhaps some are already there and maybe being angry helped and maybe others being angry with them helped. Viva the hysterical.
9
Look up the etymological history of the word hysterical and you’ll know why I’m cringing. There is nothing hysterical about heinous crimes being brought to justice.
9
They definitely need someone cracking the whip on them at the FBI and the media isn't very helpful when they claim/accept 2 years as an appropriate investigation time. That might be fine for financial/fraud and similar investigations, but when people are in (physical) harms way time should be of the essence.
4
I remain horrified that this pedophile abuser was allowed to continue in his position while the investigation was both hushed up and snail-slow. How can anyone involved at the FBI, USA Gymnastics, or Michigan State sleep at night knowing that hundreds of girls and young women were molested by this person, including some after the first report was received? I know that if I were included as an investigator, educator, or in charge of a gymnastics, dance, or other athletic program, and had been told any one of these stories about Nassar's abuse, I would have made sure he wasn't touching any other children or young women while the investigation progressed. As a pediatrician and mother, I am appalled.
9
The FBI cannot do much until they gather enough evidence from their investigations, and that takes a lot of time. It should not take this long for Olympic officials to deal with an abuser that several girls and officials have identified. It wasn't just one or two girls complaining, it was dozens or more. The Olympic organization let them down.
Nassar is not the only person that the FBI and local law enforcement should be investigating. They should also be investigating anyone who helped cover it up or knowingly allowed him to keep abusing these women after they knew about it. Those people should also face criminal charges.
8
Anyone involved in harming or allowing this sick “doctor” to harm little girls should be punished to the full extent of the law. That includes the investigators who allowed this man to continue working once they were notified that he was abusing children.
2
Of course this also happened in Russian and Romanian gymnastics where it was also covered up for years. Put middle aged men in positions of power over young women (or boys for that matter) and this will be the outcome in a proportion of cases. My guess would be there are plenty of similar scandals still to come to light in other countries and in other sports. At least now parents should have their eyes open to this sickness
7
Sadly, victims (and even more sadly, their Moms - like here - and Dads) are too often blinded by (mostly unrealistic) hope for fame and fortune via sports championships or Olympic medals.
1
This is why we need to stop being ashamed of having been molested or assaulted and shout it from the tree tops. I was abducted by a teenage boy and bound, gagged and had my shirt torn off. Then he seemed to awaken from his Vietnam fantasy and warned me not to follow him. He was afraid of ME!
The police returned to my home to show me a photo of another boy wearing the same sweatshirt with the sleeves cut off. He was not my offender, but obviously the local military academy had a serious problem. I interpreted my parents' horror to mean this must never become public, but my brother shared the whole horror with his class for show and tell.
Had he not told, then no one would have known there was a problem with teen boys abducting and molesting local girls. The police never got back to me, so no telling how many offenders or how many victims. I know I'm not the only one.
3
Any doctor who is not an ob/gyn but is doing "intravaginal adjustment" should be reported immediately to the State Board. I'm shocked that no one made a direct report so that his license was revoked or suspended until the final outcome of the investigation. There is no way he should have been allowed to continue working while under this investigation.
Has any reporter talked to the Medical Board about any complaints filed?
353
My question exactly. Where is the response to sexual abuse from the Medical Board? Why don't they enlighten us on their policies of doctors who abuse their patients so that we can be clear about them.
12
I can't help but draw a parallel here between this story and Moira Donegan's now infamous list. This story has to be the poster child for why that list happened.
16
If this had happened in Ramapo, NY, the DA would not have prosecuted Larry and would have claimed the victims refused to testify. Kudos to all these brave women and world, please wake up about the daily abuse in Ramapo, NY. where pedophiles go free due to the bloc vote.
35
The ultimate irony..Fox News, the Republicans and the very President of the United States are invoking a Constitutional Crisis because, in part, the FBI "leaks" investigative materials to accomplish its own agenda and puts its sense of morality over strictly confined investigative practices..Oh, well..has there every been a situation in the history of any law enforcement agency that cried out more for a duty to warn potential victims? Any first year law student would know they had enough info for a slam dunk conviction within days of opening the investigation..
10
Where are Comey's self serving tweets now? He was at the helm then.
43
RC for the love of whatever god you worship - learn how a Govt bureaucracy works. The "heads" dont know what isn't passed up the ranks. And vice versa. Its frustrating to say the least, but there are no means of instantaneous information relay from their field offices to the Directors office.
Im not excusing the acting agents, but to take a swipe at Comey over this is just lazy thinking. Are you a Russian bot?
3
We are seeing this over and over. Women and girls are not believed until there is overwhelming evidence of abuse from multiple victims. The father in the courtroom who tried to attack Nassar must have been driven mad by the outrageous, nauseating "treatments" performed on his daughters and by the bureaucratic indifference that allowed such attacks to continue after the F.B.I. had been notified months before Nassar was stopped. So many people let these children and women down. Nassar is going to be punished for his crimes, but are they?
430
As far as institutions who dropped the ball, we are only at the cusp of what will undoubtedly result in dozens if not hundreds of civil lawsuits against them. Michigan State's situation is going to make Penn State's look like a lemonade stand. From a P.R. standpoint alone, this is going to be all bad press for MSU for several years, and from a financial standpoint, it would not surprise me if MSU ends up filing for bankruptcy at some point a few years out. This already cost Simon (MSU president) her job, and more there and elsewhere are sure to follow.
5
There’s a new book out on this subject by Leigh Gilmore - Tainted Witness: Why We Doubt What Women Say About Their Lives.
2
"Nassar is going to be punished for his crimes, but are they?"
Very good question! Unless this is done we can expect more of this type of tragedies.
I understand the desire to investigate before accusing a well-known man of molestation. Nonetheless, there had to be a way to protect young girls during that investigation. USA Gymnastics failed these girls and the girls will pay the price for the rest of their lives. I think some heads should roll. They also need to institute precautions so that this cannot happen again. Why didn't anyone question "intravaginal adjustment," with bare hands, yet?
64
14 individual complaints filed from 1997 forward thru various officials, including Kathy Klages, MSU Head Gymnastics Coach were silenced by either veiled threats & incompetence by the Adults in charge.
Victims had nowhere to turn until Rachael Denhollander emerged filing the 1st complaint 2016. Abused by Nassar at 15 for nearly a year and now an experienced attorney/mother of (3), she had meticulously complied a 120 page 'prosecution file of evidence' over 15y which was handed over to IndyStar opening the floodgates of public disgust when her story was published.
Link to Rachael Denhollander open letters to prominent primary enablers at MSU addressing your question!
https://deadspin.com/gymnast-writes-open-letters-to-michigan-state-leade...
5
This, rather the Nunes letter, should prompt an IG investigation. People need to know how come it took so long for the FBI to nail this notorious pervert. It was likely due to bureaucracy rather than misogyny but the Bureau and other law enforcement agencies must put urgency into such investigations because delay gives a pervert time to mess with more victims, as Nassar did.
25
Money, patriarchal power & social prestige. That's all these are girls are to these gymnastics officials. And they mean even less to the universities, gymnastics groups and the myriad of other law enforcement agencies that don't take these accusations seriously. Literally, "it takes a village" of girls and their mothers, pointing fingers and screaming to get ANY action! Pathetic! When will females be valued, trusted and taken seriously??
115
Yes, patriarchal power!! Truly, methinks thou doth protest too much. "All those ... mothers taking their young daughters to practice, training camps and - yes - to years of those horrible 'doc exams' ..." And YOU know this, how? I guess it slipped right past you that fathers also were involved in their daughters' lives and training. Consider the father who near who launched over the table at Nassar in the courtroom. And obviously, you haven't been keeping up with the news, have you? Consider the makeup of the head officials of U.S. Gymnastics. Let's see: Steve Penny, Scott Blackmun, Larry Buendorf. The officials of the UofMich sports department: William Strampel, Mark Hollis. Perhaps YOU have an ax to grind with women? A clearly misogynist retort.
5
The president of Michigan state who resigned was a WOMAN and she turned a blind eye. The most powerful person at USA Gymnastics was Marta Karolyi, another woman. Some of the coaches and trainers who poo-pooed the Nassar abuse were women. Kathy Klage is another name. Women do not always protect other women.
2
Yes, Simon is culpable, but she also wasn't in daily contact with these gymnasts or Nassar. And you forgot about Bela. No one said all women protect
other women. Yet the original respondent blames MOTHERS for not knowing. And the hierarchy in sports programs is dominated by men.
1
U.S.A. Gymnastics should be shut down.The risks involved, the corruption internationally. wWe should stop abusing american children with this sport. Death, concussion ,and paralysis that occur naturally with this sport should not be overlooked, as we talk about sexual assault of the young gymnasts. Anorexia nervosa as well. These risks are real, and should all be taken seriously.
53
Number of victims of this horrible "Doc" who had the courage to step forward stays now at 265, so one can assume that the actual number of victims is (much, much) higher.
One would wish and hope that he was the only sexual abuse on athletes committing physician in the U.S. world of female gymnastics ... but it is not likely to be the case.
Competitive sports (like movie casting process) are characterized by extremely high hopes thus very vulnerable people, especially when they are minors. And their parents - in seeking statistically elusive fame and fortune for their kids (or selves?) are blinded and tend "see nothing wrong".
1
"...the safety and well-being of our youth is a top priority for the F.B.I....
But evidently not the top priority...
21
Right? Talk is cheap.
1
No, the FBI did not "care for" HRC at all.
So which is it? Stand by he FBI over their slow, methodical investigation of Trump and his associates, or move quickly on sex crimes?
7
False equivalency, to say the least... you can't conflate the two types of investigations whatsoever. You really shouldn't try.
24
That IS false equivalency: in this kind of a situation, there is an obligation to protect the public - in this case minor children - from being abused.
It suggests some huge disconnect or dysfunction in the FBI - and a lack of common sense - and failure to recognized imminent risk. It could even be that their hierarchical structure worked against doing the right thing. Whatever it stemmed from, allowing injury to occur while you get your paperwork set up perfectly is not acceptable.
Once the FBI ( or local police) knew there were victims, had interviewed some, and found them credible, the FBI even knew his method of abuse -- and therefore they knew he was a major risk to others.
What I do not yet understand is why and how the FBI became the investigating agency.
5
Point taken. The FBI is a bureaucracy, slow to act for better or for worse. What I can't understand is how some of the parents stood by, in some cases, not believing their daughters. This what I find most appalling, second to the "doctor's" actions. It seems ambition took a front seat in a very egregious way.
1
Well it is about time the NYT unleashed some investigative reporters onto this story! This is the most horrific Olympic story since the massacre in Munich. This far exceeds Penn State in its scope and damage. Many more people will lose jobs and possibly end up (rightfully) criminally charged. This is the biggest "sports" story in decades and the Times has spent far too little time or resources pursuing it. Please no more "opinion" pieces. Follow the news please....how can we care about figure skating or skiing or curling when this story hangs out there with new revelations nearly every day? The TImes should own this story. Own it please.
302
I’m a teacher, and therefore a mandated reporter. If I have any evidence that a child is being harmed, I am required to report that within 24 hours. The purpose of this law is to spur action that can protect a child from harm.
Social workers, physicians, therapists, day care workers: all mandated to report suspected abuse. Immediately.
This predator was shielded by a larger system. But once this came to the attention of law enforcement he should have been stopped.
It’s hard to understand how someone could be under investigation so long that dozens more are victimized.
656
My partner reported evidence that her then-husband was preying on boys encountered at hospitals during his work as a pediatrician. The mandatory reporter took it upon herself to manipulate my partner into a situation in which her disclosure would become privileged information, then coached the pedophile on how he could avoid being caught for crimes already committed. Justice was never served and the not-nice doctor is still at work. Meanwhile, my partner was victimized for her trouble.
Powerful institutions did not get that way by exposing their weaknesses. Victims are usually not powerful. It's a simple paradigm that repeats injustice wherever it is left undisturbed. Without a neutral and independent ombudsman or investigative body held free of harm by attacks by institution being monitored, corruption is to be expected. This is what is playing out in Congress over "the memo." It is no different in schools, hospitals, prisons, religious institutions, or consolidated industries. From that perspective, it is surprising that this case ever got the exposure it did, long overdue though it was.
36
You know this doctor is still causing harm? What's wrong with you? Do everything in your power to out him! Dear Lord.
2
L.S., hindsight is always 20-20 .. but there are dozens of public-comment boards on the quality of physicians.
Nassar's name is not on them. I do not know why .. mine are.
1
The irony should not be lost on the NY Times that, on the one hand it publishes (on the same day) an opinion piece by a former member of the FBI resigning (apparently out of pride), while this article shows the FBI bumbling just a bit. Have any members of the FBI team that investigated the Nasser matter resigned (out of pride)?
Probably not.
59
It sounds like the agents weren't assigned for almost 10 months. Blame lies with management.
11
It is not the NYT's fault for displaying different facts and opinions. Unlike FOX brainwashing, the Times leaves its readers to discern their own beliefs. Always look at the authors, not necessarily the publisher.
1
Just as blame seems to lie with management in the current affair!
1
One thing missing in this whole thing is the blind acceptance of medical authority. Did ANYONE think to ask another physician if this was child abuse? Any reasonably well trained physician would immediately recognize this as abuse. In no medical school curriculum that I am aware of does one find the recommendation to do vaginal manipulation for any reason, least of all to address hamstring pulls. The “shaky thing” with his hands? Everyone in power is UTTERLY without excuse, and likely complicit.
425
I've heard about it as a component of Osteopathic Manipulative Therapy (OMT), which is a broad field that leaves itself open to a high degree of interpretation and individual experimentation (which some might argue is a little disproportionate to its basis in evidence). As a DO myself (one who does not ever perform OMT), the "techniques" described sound to me like perverted elaborations of pelvic manipulations that - while rarely performed and probably of dubious value - are in fact described in the osteopathic literature. Some of these techniques have a lot of support from patients and doctors alike - which might explain some of this doctor's popularity with athletes - though it certainly seems clear that Nassar took this well beyond anything remotely medically appropriate.
11
Since you provide no citations and can reference nothing specifically, Nassar's intravaginal adjustments still remain criminal. He may have used his training and experience in sports medicine to treat these athlete's, but there is no justification for sexually abusing them. Don't conflate the two.
1
But if for some reason you must do it (not that Nassar had legit reasons), where were the GLOVES and the FEMALE attendant?? Why was he ALONE after hours in HOTEL rooms with these girls?
10
This is an outrage. WHERE IS OUR OUTRAGE? Why were we collectively more transfixed by the Weinstein abuses than by this?
45
Why would you want to pit one group of women's abuse against another group and demand us to choose? C'mon!
3
Believe me, there is plenty of outrage over this.
But Nasser is in jail for the rest of his life and Weinstein remains free.
3
For at least 40 years we have been hearing about schools and other organizations quietly ignoring and covering up sexual assaults because it would be bad for their reputation. The goal of the university or organization is to protect its own reputation and its superiors. Why is anyone surprised that this pedophile was allowed to assault young girls with the knowing or unknowing cooperation of management over a period of years? From the first notice to management, by their inaction, they were accomplices for every assault that occurred afterwards.
So, he showed a Power Point Presentation to some police officers. And they just took his word? What if he had done the same presentation, but performing sex acts on boys with his fingers? Maybe then the men watching it would have recognized it as sexual assault? Were there no women officers at that meeting? If so, they should have recognized the assaults and been revolted. Maybe if there were a couple Vice Cops in the room, they would have been able to tell the others that what was described was sex acts, not medical treatment and that they arrested people every day for getting paid to do the same thing.
This pedophile has shown no actual remorse or shame; even after his confession he was still trying to justify his actions. Those who, by inaction, became his accomplices should be ashamed of themselves.
Every single person involved in this massive cover up should be brought to account, in public.
200
Points well made.
But don't you wonder how so many hundreds of parents (yes, in large majority Moms) for all those years and hundreds of this "doc exams", while even being present when he committed his crimes ... were blinded by (elusive) idea of fame and fortune ... and were bringing their daughters over and over again to suffer this ordeal?
2
How many female FBI agents do we have? We need more. We need to assign them to these types of cases.
Larry the pedofile made sure his victims were female children. What didn't those agents understand about that and how urgent it was to get this guy?
There doesn't seem to be much empathy or serious concern that these children were being sexually abused from any of the men in this story especially Mr. Penny.
Telling a victim and her mother not to talk to anyone is SO wrong and exactly what pedofiles tell children when they are molesting them.
After reading this, I feel for the father of one of the victims who just tried to attack Larry. How could all of these incompetent people have ignored how serious this was and how quickly they needed to act to keep all of these children away from him?
152
It seems to me like you're adding a layer of sexism to this issue that is not supported at all by the currently available evidence. You have no clue how many women were involved in the FBI investigation of this case, and no basis to make a judgement about whether that is relevant at all. Your insinuation that this case moved more slowly because men must have been in charge is frankly a little repulsive.
6
If this scenario had not played out in one fashion or another all over the country over many years, I might be inclined to agree with you. This is the tip of a very large iceberg.
3
Do you really think or believe that "having many females" in the entire process would make a difference?
For example, right at the very beginning, when and where all those (in untold thousands of instances as this involves at least 300 victims and decades) Moms were there, dropping off and picking up, being present at their daughters' "doc exams", why, why they did't noticed anything, especially so atrocious?
Can that be that in all those cases a (statistically illusionary) hope in fame and fortune blinded their female and maternal instincts?
1
Maybe I missed it, but why was this any of the FBI's business? Isn't such molestation a state matter, e.g., state judges tried Nassat. Please advise.
9
The FBI will get involved in multi-state cases. Probably there should be another agency that deals specifically with sexual abuse. Look at how long Jerry Sandusky got away with his continuous abuse of boys and young men at Penn State. Our children need better protection. This goes on all over the world and there is little to stop these monsters. This is a problem with MEN. MEN have to stop their brothers and sons from committing sexual assault. MEN won't listen to us victims.
19
It didn't just occur in Michigan.
6
The molestations occurred in multiple states. That's why the FBI has jurisdiction.
7
Shameful and sickening. Our male-dominated society just doesn't care about women. The culture enabled and protected Nassar. The idea that he was sticking his fingers in little girls' vaginas and anuses for a year after the abuse was reported is horrifying. Women: run for office, go into law enforcement, fight the patriarchy. It is the only way to protect ourselves.
289
Cathy:
As 265 victims already stepped forward with accusations it is likely that at least an additional couple of hundreds - for whatever reason - didn't do so. Then we have years of this doc "exams". That represents thousands of incidents where, mostly minor, girls and women were abused.
Where were the claimed "female" and "maternal" "sense for spotting a danger"? What blinded it? Perhaps a (statistically illusionary) hope in fame and fortune though their daughters' gymnastics achievements?
2
Whoa, madam. In some of the cases, the mothers were in the exam room -- fact.
This has been a very complex case. And only NYTimes has clearly explained the legal elements of the assaults --
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/31/well/live/pelvic-massage-can-be-legit...
Even female judges require facts, madam. Really. Not kidding.
6
Stop the nonsense. Our "male-dominated" society also turned a blind eye to young boys being molested and raped by perverts masquerading as priests for many years.
Sexual perverts and monsters prey on boys and girls. Not everything is a feminist issue. In fact, most things are not.
4
Bye, bye mr. Penny. You are the gymnastic version of Cardinal Law.
48
Failing to separate this monster from kids? Asking a world class gymnast to travel cross country for an interview instead of cutting an immediate lead to California? Allowing access to hundreds of potential victims to gather "more evidence?" This is insane. The Bureau has turned into the CIA. All "analytical" nonsense and no action. The Bureau fails, again. Too many meetings on conjured "intelligence gaps" and inexperienced, untested "analysts" in charge. What happened? Was it just Mueller's naivete? Comey's partisan games? McCabe's ambition? Or, has the Bureau just turned into the PC Partisan Police? The street cops are mortified. The Agents of the rank and file, disgusted.
29
The sad truth is that when such horrible things happen for such a long time, there are usually a whole chain of people who drop the ball in one way or another. This case, like at Penn State, is no exception.
390
What about the parents who brought their children month after month to Dr. Nassar . As far as I can glean from all the news media, this was voluntary. Didn’t they listen to their children? If yes, why did they keep bringing back year after year?
1
No matter how many times bad people perpetrate crimes, it dos not excuse the people who are responsible for protecting the victims.
The FBI has been so preoccupied with politics, they pushed investigations like the one on Nasser down to the bottom.
FBI Agents like Peter Strzok and his Mistress sent so many text messages outlining their plans to stop the will of the people, they did not have time to stop the will of a monster like Dr. Nasser.
The FBI needs to stop tying to influence elections because they think they know who should President. Let the people decide who should be President, and focus on stopping the real criminals like Dr. Nasser from destroying young lives.
#DrainTheSwamp
1
How can society even begin to remunerate and repair these young victims? The judge in the most recent Nasser sentencing showed some comprehension of what a great monster had been let loose on their bodies. The greatly distressed police commander who apologized for invalidating one victim's complaint showed some semblance of realized of what inaction had wreaked. The parents believe them, the press is behind them, the public is furious, their victimized sisters can now each other. But none of that is enough to repair the emotional, mental and spiritual wreckage and society has to find ways to ensure their wounds are treated -- real treatment this time.
1
Wherever & whenever you have kids and adults meeting in any setting-you have potential monsters in the mix-bottom line.
30
Who were all the people insisting that what he was doing was accepted medical procedure? Why is it that the FBI is always bogged down with "jurisdiction " problems?
53
The U.S. gymnasts were winning medals. That's all that U.S.A. Gymnastics and the USOC really cared about.
12
Good question -- Who were all the people insisting that what he was doing was accepted medical procedure? A report a couple days ago said it exists in medical practice, but concerns adult patients. We are talking about many children here.
2
Between the trash collectors and a local newspaper the problem was solved. The FBI was nowhere to be found. Troubling at least.
162
Just another attack on the FBI. I think the purpose of this article is to discredit this institution. Since when did it become the FBI's job to investigate the gymnastic team's licensed medical professional? We have prosecutors and a court system for such as that.
1
Just another attack on the FBI.
---
Seriously doubt that U.S. Sen. Gillibrand would agree.
IMHO .. had the FBI just made a few calls, early on .. it would have *freaked out* MSU and USOC, to action. That is the point of this article .. which, in case you did not notice, was written by top-tier NYT writers. Period.
And what are they currently taking their time on that we may hear about a year from now? Really, the Nassar fiasco was made possible by dozens of supervisors and authorities who chose to behave like bystanders. I'm not sure who's worse, frankly.
136
When will we ever take sexual abuse and rape more seriously in our society?
Believe children. They are innocent.
179
It makes sense to believe children while taking precaution. In matters of guilt, believe facts. People in the layers and layers of the system failed to take precaution. If investigation finds those in authority still failed to take precaution after hearing initial reports, then appropriate legal cases should be brought up against them. They can't just resign and evade responsibilities. I also tend to think children are innocent, but they are put in harm's way because they are powerless and hence disposable to those in power. It is so rotten!
1
If women were being molested by the dozens, why wasn't this just taken up by local law enforcement?
The guy is clearly guilty with tons of evidence against him -- using the FBI on this slam dunk case is like using an elephant gun to kill a rat.
36
Please, do just a little research.
2
Reports of sexual abuse were made to local police in 2004 and 2014. The police “investigation” involved talking to Nassar and taking him at his word. Great help the police were ...
4
Now I AM mad at the FBI!
36
That is exactly the purpose of this article - to blame the FBI and anger the people. In short, to discredit the FBI. I realize that Nassar and the gymnists, et al traveled all over due the nature of their competition events but I don't believe that the said travel should change the jurisdiction.
1
Pointing out its errors is different from discrediting it. That's why checks and balances are in place. NYT provides a useful service in this case.
1
What lessons does this story hold for the next reporters of abuse who get stalled and stonewalled by the authorities they asked for help? Don't go alone. Numbers provide strength to your argument and also create a bigger noise so that those authorities can't put you off, "reassure" you of their actions, keep you quiet one by one. And don't wait. Don't be patient. Don't make their lives easier. Treat them as part of the problem. In short, trust your instincts, keep asking questions and demanding answers. They are counting on you (and us, on all women) to be what used to be called "good."
194
The takeaway is obvious: don’t call police; call media.
191
Uh, What .. this has made the case for #MeToo. That is, go public, on social media.
Heck, just Web-based rating boards can stop creeps like ex-Dr. Nassar. From the start, in 1997, Nassar showed poor patient skills. Today, he'd be in trouble, STAT.
7
Well, I WOULD make a complaint to the police covering the area where the assault occurred. At minimum, it would create a record. It would also show that the reporter is willing to stand behind the report. In some areas police have specially trained teams or resources to assist them.
It doesn't appear that this happened. Parents complained to the USA Gymnastics Association, which finally called the FBI . . . That Association had no legal right to act as if it was speaking for the young women, and its interests were into at all the same as the gymnasts'.
5
Thank god for the Indianapolis Star, brave enough to do the right thing while local and federal law enforcement officers stalled and drug their feet. This is why we need a free press and this is why real journalists are so important to the ideal of what it really means to be an American.
750
Excuse me -- the Michigan State University Police Department tried three times in mid-2016 to have the local prosecutor to criminally charge ex-Dr. Nassar.
https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/local/2018/01/26/larry-na...
But that office, headed for 20 years by a U. of Mich. Law grad later convicted of sex crimes himself, would not charge.
A correction here -- " .. his alma mater, Holt High School .."
Nassar was born in the Detroit area and graduated from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor -- he lived in Holt as an adult. Look it up.
And IMHO, Nassar, from the start, showed poor patient-management skills. In a small practice, that is never tolerated.
But in big bureaucracies -- USOC, USGA, MSU, public schools, state of Hawaii 9-1-1 center -- poor performance regularly proves the old meme "good enough for government work."
10
I once stumbled upon some pretty bad illegal activity and called the fib. I was told they were too busy to pursue the criminals. Not sure what they thought was more important.
1
Yes! Right up there with the reporters depicted in Spotlight.
2