Rep. Jim Jordan Faces Deposition About Osu Sex Abuse Scandal

Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, 1 of nan Republican Party’s apical inquisitors successful Congress, is expected to beryllium deposed Friday astir allegations that he grounded to protect nan wrestlers he erstwhile coached astatine Ohio State University from a intersexual predator, 4 plaintiffs successful lawsuits against nan assemblage told NBC News.

Jordan, who was nan adjunct wrestling coach astatine nan assemblage from 1986 to 1994 earlier he sewage into politics, has many times and publically denied immoderate knowledge that nan team’s doctor, Richard Strauss, was preying connected nan athletes.

It will beryllium nan first clip Jordan has beryllium questioned nether oath by lawyers representing hundreds of erstwhile OSU students, some athletes and nonathletes, who are suing nan schoolhouse for damages successful national tribunal successful nan Southern District of Ohio. Jordan is not a defendant, but he is referred to successful immoderate of nan lawsuits alleging he was alert of nan abuse.

Jordan, nan powerful president of nan House Judiciary Committee and a staunch state of President Donald Trump, is known for his combative questioning of witnesses and for avoiding suit jackets during it.

Reached for comment, Jordan spokesperson Russell Dye released a variety of nan connection Jordan’s squad has been utilizing since July 2018, erstwhile 3 erstwhile OSU wrestlers told NBC News that Jordan was lying erstwhile he claimed he did not cognize that Strauss molested them nether nan guise of giving beingness examinations.

“As everyone knows, Chairman Jordan ne'er saw aliases heard of immoderate abuse, and if he had, he would person dealt pinch it,” nan connection said.

Mike DiSabato, who wrestled for Jordan and was nan first erstwhile OSU student who publically accused him of having turned a unsighted eye to nan maltreatment Strauss inflicted connected him and his teammates, said he does not expect Jordan to opportunity immoderate much than he already has.

“I presume he’s going to triple down and travel nan aforesaid book he followed backmost successful 2018 erstwhile he went connected Fox and denied knowing astir immoderate abuse, denied being told of immoderate abuse, ne'er heard nan connection ‘abuse,’” DiSabato said.

DiSabato was referring to an question and reply pinch Fox News’ Bret Baier successful which Jordan besides insisted that he did not perceive any locker room banter astir Strauss.

Still, said DiSabato, who antecedently reached a colony pinch OSU, he hopes Jordan “will yet travel retired and admit that he knew Strauss was doing unnecessary prostate exams, doing unnecessary genital exams, taking aggregate showers pinch athletes, each while being employed by a assemblage funded by nan authorities of Ohio.”

Jordan will beryllium down for a deposition astir a period aft nan merchandise of an HBO Max documentary astir nan Strauss ungraded called “Surviving Ohio State,” successful which 1 of nan wrestlers he erstwhile coached flat-out called him a liar.

Another Strauss survivor, Steve Snyder-Hill, said he will watch nan deposition Friday astatine his lawyer’s agency successful Columbus. While he is not a erstwhile athlete, Snyder-Hill is 1 of nan erstwhile OSU students suing nan university.

“I expect him to dishonesty nether oath,” Snyder-Hill said. “I don’t cognize a nicer measurement to put it.”

Snyder-Hill said Strauss abused him astatine a field session successful 1995. He said that what nan expert was alleged to person been doing to young men nether nan guise of giving beingness examinations yet became an unfastened concealed passim campus, extending beyond nan athletes’ locker rooms.

“Jordan had a locker 2 down from Strauss, and Jordan claims he didn’t know?” Snyder-Hill said. “That’s difficult to believe.”

Strauss, who died successful 2005, worked astatine OSU from 1978 done 1998.

Prompted by allegations from DiSabato and different erstwhile OSU wrestlers, nan assemblage agreed to an independent investigation by nan Perkins Coie rule firm, which concluded successful 2019 that coaches and diversion administrators knew for 2 decades that Strauss was molesting antheral athletes and different students but grounded to sound nan siren aliases extremity him.

Jordan’s erstwhile communications director, Ian Fury, insisted successful 2019 that nan study absolved Jordan. All of nan coaches and administrators’ names were redacted successful nan type of nan study released to nan public.

Fury cited arsenic impervious a statement successful nan study that said investigators “did not place immoderate different contemporaneous documentary grounds indicating that members of nan OSU coaching staff, including caput coaches aliases adjunct coaches, received aliases were alert of complaints regarding Strauss’ intersexual misconduct.”

Since nan merchandise of nan report, OSU has said it has paid out $60 cardinal successful colony money and its erstwhile president has publically apologized “to each personification who endured” maltreatment astatine nan hands of Strauss.

Several of nan lawsuits mention Jordan by name.

Still facing astatine slightest 5 progressive lawsuits from 236 men alleging Strauss molested them, too, OSU, which had apologized to Strauss’ victims and had reported successful 2019 that Strauss committed 1,429 intersexual assaults and 47 rapes, walked backmost its erstwhile position successful October 2023 and denied having admitted immoderate wrongdoing. The settlements it paid retired were without admittance of liability and were reached done mediation.

OSU besides based on that nan statute of limitations successful nan lawsuit against it had tally out.

But successful June 2023, nan Supreme Court refused to reconsider a little tribunal ruling that said erstwhile students should beryllium allowed to writer OSU, paving nan measurement for their lawyers to mobility Jordan and different OSU labor astir Strauss.

Former Athletic Director Andy Geiger was deposed Wednesday, NBC connection WCMH of Columbus reported. Some of nan lawsuits mention to Geiger arsenic 1 of respective group whom student-athletes allege they told astir nan maltreatment erstwhile it was happening.

“We scheme to depose each OSU worker alleged to person known astir Strauss’ abuse, including nan labor named successful nan complaints,” Adele Kimmel, head of nan Public Justice Students’ Civil Rights Project, said successful June 2023.