It is hard to imagine anything more despicable than former Michigan State doctor Larry Nassar’s abuse of hundreds of women and girls. That is, it’s hard to imagine anything worse until you hear the stories of Nassar’s victims who tried to speak up only to be ignored, doubted and otherwise mistreated by the authorities who should have helped them.
This appalling mistreatment was detailed recently in Senate hearings, during which some of the nation’s top gymnasts recounted how they not only were abused by Nassar but also then victimized further by investigators.
Their testimony was part of a Senate inquiry into the FBI’s botching of the Nassar investigation. Witnesses recounted that they knew of more women and girls who were molested by Nassar after the FBI had been made aware of allegations against him in 2015.
There is no excuse for this and even though FBI Director Christopher Wray has apologized and promised reforms, no one should consider the case closed.
Accountability is still lacking here after an inspector general’s report determined that the Indianapolis field office of the FBI improperly responded to reports about Nassar in 2015. The agency fired the supervisory agent who failed to investigate Nassar but so far has declined to prosecute him and another agent singled out in the inspector general’s report.
One of the gymnasts was asked after the hearing if she was reassured by the promises of Mr. Wray and others that reforms have been put in place to make sure this never happens again. She essentially said she was not reassured by anyone’s words. She wants to see action.
We all should demand as much. These are, sadly, not isolated cases. Nassar at Michigan State, Richard Strauss at Ohio State, Jerry Sandusky at Penn State, George Tyndall at USC — all got away with abusing victims for decades, not because authorities were never alerted to their crimes, but because authorities neglected their duty to stop the perpetrators.
The time for promises of doing better is over. The time to prove that reforms are working is here.
And, sadly, we know there certainly will be more opportunities. The only question is when and where will the next chance emerge for authorities to show they will stop failing victims of predators. We must step up and protect the vulnerable.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
