Ohio State University says it will pay $5.8 million to settle lawsuits by about two dozen more survivors over decades-old sexual abuse by the late team doctor Richard Strauss.
The Tuesday announcement brings the total to $46.7 million in settlements so far in cases involving 185 survivors.
Nearly 400 men have sued the university over its failure to stop Strauss during his two-decade tenure despite students raising concerns with various school officials back then. Lawsuits by more than half of those accusers remain pending.
Many say they were groped during exams at campus facilities, an off-campus men’s clinic or Strauss' home between 1979 and Strauss' retirment in 1998. Strauss died by suicide in 2005. No one has come forward to defend him.
In a statement released Tuesday OSU president Kristina Johnson said “The university has condemned Strauss’ reprehensible conduct and expressed its appreciation to survivors for coming forward.... Our work toward restorative justice continues.”
