Strauss victims plead with OSU trustees for help in justice fight
LEFT:
COLUMBUS — Three former Ohio State students who said they were sexually abused by university physician Richard Strauss decades ago addressed Ohio State’s Board of Trustees on Thursday, calling on the university to “tell the truth” and “do the right thing.”
A dozen Strauss survivors and their loved ones sat inside the Longaberger Alumni House at the trustees’ full board meeting to hear the three men — former Ohio State athletes Steve Snyder-hill, Gary Avis and a person who simply asked to be referred to as a John Doe — call out Ohio State’s leadership for what they say is an attempt to ignore survivors and move on.
“We don’t want to be dismissed, we want to be heard,” Snyder-hill said.
“The OSU that I believe in is better than this,” he continued. “I want you to listen to us ... I’m really concerned that if you have another Richard Strauss, that based on the actions I’ve seen from 2018 on, nothing is going to change ... Nothing.”
Strauss survivors have come to speak at November’s board of trustees meeting for the last three years, but they were not originally scheduled to speak this time around.
Snyder-hill, who has been one of the most vocal of the survivors, emailed the board on Sept. 3 requesting a chance for Strauss survivors to speak at November’s public meeting.
He received an automated email acknowledgement from the board, but never heard anything more, he said. After three more attempts to contact trustees, Snyder-hill said he and other survivors decided to organize a protest.
Snyder-hill said he sent one final message on Tuesday and finally heard back at 5 p.m. that three individuals could have a 10-minute time slot to speak before the board Thursday.
Ohio State spokesman Ben Johnson said the university thought his request to speak before the board “was no longer active.”
“Prior to this week, based upon Mr. Snyder-hill’s last correspondence with the Board Office, the university believed the request to speak was no longer active,” Johnson
said. “In an email this week Stephen Snyder-hill informed us his request to speak was active. We added time to the agenda, at the beginning of the full board meeting.”
“The university understands the importance of listening to survivors and will look for the appropriate times and opportunities to continue the dialogue,” Johnson said.
Ohio State settled with 232 survivors, paying a totaling of $57.8 million through mediation and the university’s individual settlement program.
The survivors who spoke at Thursday’s meeting didn’t participate in OSU’S settlement program.
In September, U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Watson had dismissed all of the outstanding lawsuits against Strauss.
In his opinion, Watson said the hundreds of plaintiffs in multiple civil lawsuits could not move forward because of expired statute of limitations related to sexual abuse claims, which for most criminal rape charges in Ohio is up to 20 years.
He wrote that it is “beyond dispute” that the plaintiffs have “suffered unspeakable sexual abuse by Strauss,” and that doctors, athletic directors, coaches and others in positions of power “failed to protect these victims from Strauss’ predation.”
Watson said it is not within the judiciary’s power to help the plaintiffs but it instead “starts with the legislature.”
The survivors at Thursday’s meeting told board members they have the power to help change the statute of limitations and
protect future students from ever being abused.
Gary Avis, a former Ohio State student and a manager for the university’s men’s gymnastics team, said being abused by Strauss led him to drugs and alcohol. He said he’s in therapy now, working through the repercussions of his abuse.
“None of us got into this for the money. We got into this because we know what is right and what is wrong,” Avis said. “We’ve heard your words. We haven’t seen your action.”
Snyder-hill said he was accused of just trying to ruin Strauss’ reputation when he first came forward about being abused.
“Imagine how humiliated your child would feel in that situation ... that’s what happened to me,” Snyder-hill said.