Chicago Tribune|Chicago Sports|Section 3|Monday, February 24, 2020 9
eNEWSPAPER BONUS COVERAGE
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — When
the University of Michigan an-
nounced last week that allegations
of decades-old sexual misconduct
by a sports doctor were under
investigation, former wrestler
Mike DiSabato was stunned by the
parallels to an abuse scandal at his
alma mater, Ohio State.
The accusations by several peo-
ple against Dr. Robert E. Anderson
at Michigan immediately called to
mind claims DiSabato and hun-
dreds of other men made about
Dr. Richard Strauss at Ohio State.
The two cases had striking simi-
larities. Two physicians, both dead
for years, are now accused of using
their positions to abuse male
athletes and students. Both men
worked in athletics and student
health care, were well-regarded
during long tenures and at some
point focused on researching or
treating genital ailments.
“It’s unbelievable, yet totally
believable,” DiSabato said in an
interview with The Associated
Press.
Former athletes have alleged
that both doctors performed inap-
propriate or unnecessary exams.
They said some athletes joked and
warned each other about the
behavior but did not challenge it
because they were embarrassed,
unsure of the medical necessity or
unwilling to risk jeopardizing
their spot on a team. They recalled
nicknames for the physicians like
“Dr. Jelly Paws” and “Dr. Drop
Your Drawers.”
Former patients said they made
coaches or other officials aware of
concerns decades ago and got
nowhere. Investigators said both
men came under scrutiny by state
regulators in the mid-1990s, but
the cases were closed. The accusa-
tions against Strauss and Ander-
son were brought to the attention
of university officials by former
wrestlers just a few months apart
in 2018, but the resulting investi-
gations and responses have fol-
lowed different timelines.
Ohio State launched a school-
funded investigation by a law firm
in April 2018. Those investigators
concluded last year that Strauss
sexually abused young men for
nearly two decades, starting in the
late 1970s, and that school officials
failed to stop him. The university
has apologized and promised a “
monetary resolution,” though the
federal lawsuits against the school
remain unsettled after months of
mediation.
University of Michigan officials
said campus police began investi-
gating Anderson after a former
wrestler notified the athletic di-
rector in July 2018 that he was
fondled during medical exams in
the 1970s and had told his coach
back then. After local prosecutors
reviewed the investigation and
determined no criminal charges
could be authorized, the school
announced Wednesday that an
outside investigation by a law firm
was underway.Those investigators are likely to
encounter similar hurdles as well.
Many years have passed. Memo-
ries have faded. Records may have
been purged, and some employees
or others with relevant knowledge
may be dead.
The president of the University
of Michigan apologized Thursday
to “anyone who was harmed” by
Anderson. While no one has
publicly defended Strauss, The
Detroit News quoted Anderson’s
children rebuffing the allegations
against their father. In a police
report, former Michigan football
coach Lloyd Carr was among
those interviewed who said they
did not see or hear about any
inappropriate behavior.
Meanwhile, some of Ander-
son’s accusers are eyeing potential
legal action, including Olympic
wrestler Andy Hrovat, the first
athlete to make public accusationsabout being mistreated.
“It’s clear that Andy has a
claim,” said attorney Michael
Nimmo, part of the Denver-based
law firm representing Hrovat.
“There are federal and state laws
that will protect him and all
student-athletes who were put in
the same situation he was with
respect to providing a safe envi-
ronment to have medical exams
done. We’re going to be investigat-
ing that to the fullest extent.”
Another attorney, John Manly,
said former Michigan athletes
alleging misconduct by Anderson
have also reached out to his firm.
Manly represented more than 200
victims in the abuse cases that led
to the imprisonment of former
gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar
and a $500 million settlement by
Michigan State.
MSU dropped a plan to investi-
gate its handling of the Nassarcomplaints and release a public
report, upsetting survivors who
have urged the school’s new presi-
dent to revive the investigation.
Rachael Denhollander, the first
woman to publicly accuse Nassar
of sexual abuse, told the AP that
University of Michigan leaders
should not follow Michigan
State’s lead and should commit to
a “truly independent review,” the
findings of which would be made
public. She said she’s dismayed,
though, by how Michigan officials
have handled things so far.
“The scary thing and the horri-
fying thing about these situations
is that it’s always the same set of
circumstances. It’s always people
in authority who care more about
reputation, who care more about
some outside set of goals than they
care about people, covering up
reports of abuse,” Denhollander
said.
Michigan State’s mishandling
of the Nassar complaints led to a
$4.5 million federal fine in Sep-
tember and a statement by Educa-
tion Secretary Betsy DeVos that
such behavior “must not happen
again, there or anywhere else.”
DeVos’ department also is in-
vestigating whether Ohio State
handled reports about Strauss
appropriately. The agency would
not confirm Friday whether it has
any investigation related to Michi-
gan and Anderson. Universities
dealing with such allegations face
heightened concerns about insti-
tutional trust after sexual miscon-
duct investigations at other
schools and throughout the Cath-
olic Church and the Boy Scouts,
said Peter McDonough, vice presi-
dent and general counsel for the
American Council on Education.
“The public tends to perceive
that the first step is figuring out
how to defend oneself as an
institution or an individual,”
McDonough said. “Higher ed in-
stitutions are not about defending
in these situations in the first
instance. They are about figuring
out what happened, or at least
they should be.”Robert Julian Stone looks over his medical records on Jan. 20 in his home in Palm Springs, Calif. Stone alleges a late U of M Athletic Department physician sexually assaulted him.
KIM KOZLOWSKI/AP‘IT’S UNBELIEVABLE’
Sex-misconduct claims at the University of Michigan mirror OSU doctor case
In a photo provided by the Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan, Dr. Robert E. Anderson is
shown. The University of Michigan president has apologized to “anyone who was harmed” by Anderson.ROBERT KALMBACH/AP“The scary thing and the horrifying thing about these situations is that it’s always the same set of circumstances.”
— Rachael Denhollander, the first woman to publicly accuse imprisoned former MSU gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar of sexual abuse