Another FBI failure
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On Wednesday, the women—elite gymnasts Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney, Maggie Nichols and Aly Raisman—gave U.S. senators an emotional and unsparing account of how the Federal Bureau of Investigation, USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee failed to investigate or act when they emerged as potential victims of sexual assault by former national team doctor Larry Nassar.
“I can imagine no place that I would be less comfortable right now than sitting here in front of you, sharing these comments,” said Biles, one of the most decorated gymnasts in her sport’s history. She then paused in tears, before adding: “To be clear, I blame Larry Nassar but I also blame an entire system that enabled and perpetrated his abuse.”
“If allegations raised by well-known, world-class athletes are not taken seriously by the FBI, what hope do other victims of sexual assault have?” asked Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican who had pushed for the release of the inspector general’s report.
Biles focused part of her testimony on USA Gymnastics officials effectively cutting her out of their initial five-week internal investigation, telling senators: “USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee knew that I was abused by their official team doctor long before I was ever made aware of their knowledge.”
Maroney, who won gold and silver medals at the 2012 Olympics, vividly recalled her abuse by Nassar, but reserved her toughest criticism for the FBI, the subject of a searing report published in July by the Department of Justice’s Office of Inspector General that concluded it didn’t take seriously the allegations against Nassar when USA Gymnastics came to them in late July 2015.
In "Talking to Strangers" Malcolm Gladwell has a fascinating account of the whole affair, how Nasser was charming, obscure, and people...just didn't believe such a thing could happen.
When the team doc does a vaginal
exammanipulation - without gloves, I might add - there's something wrong. And nobody believed it.The families are unhappy because Gladwell's account seems to put some of the blame on them for not coming forward, by the way.
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Maybe the Feds aren't as hopelessly 'woke' as everybody seems to think.
This sounds like the good old days of completely ignoring complaints made by women against men in positions of authority.
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I think they are very woke. I think they are so woke, old-fashioned crime is no longer fashionable to pursue...At least not at the upper levels.
One of Trump's best ideas was to move some departments out of Washington. Too much in-breeding, too many people at the same parties.
I think it would do the FBI good to be in Chicago, St. Louis or Cincinnati.
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Ex-Team USA gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar stabbed multiple times in prison
Convicted child molester Larry Nassar was stabbed multiple times in the federal prison where he is serving up to 175 years for sexually assaulting star gymnasts, according to a report Monday.
Two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press the attack happened Sunday during a fight with another inmate at the United States Penitentiary Coleman in Florida.
He was stabbed in the back and in the chest but was said to be stable condition, according to one of the sources.
More than 250 women, including Olympians like Aly Raisman and Simone Biles, have accused the convicted pedophile of sexually abusing them under the guise of medical treatment.
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The U.S. Justice Department has agreed to pay approximately $100 million to settle claims with about 100 people who say they were sexually assaulted by sports doctor Larry Nassar, a source with direct knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
An internal investigation found that FBI agents mishandled abuse allegations by women more than a year before Nassar was arrested in 2016.