Ohio congressman Jim Jordan called to testify over allegations of ignoreing sex abuse at Ohio State University.
Rep. Jim Jordan, the powerful chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and a staunch ally of President Donald Trump, is set to be deposed under oath this week as part of a civil lawsuit against Ohio State University (OSU). The deposition comes amidst ongoing allegations that Jordan, who was an assistant wrestling coach at OSU from 1986 to 1994, failed to protect the wrestlers he once coached from sexual predator Dr. Richard Strauss.
Despite the allegations, there is no definitive finding that Jordan had knowledge of Strauss' sexual abuse. The independent investigation by Perkins Coie law firm, concluded in 2019, found that coaches and athletic administrators knew for two decades that Strauss was molesting male athletes and other students but failed to take action. However, the report did not identify any evidence indicating that Jordan or other coaches received or were aware of complaints regarding Strauss' sexual misconduct.
Jordan has repeatedly denied any knowledge that Strauss was preying on the athletes. OSU has paid out $60 million in settlement money to Strauss' victims, and the university has reached substantial settlement agreements with victims. In October 2023, OSU walked back its previous position and denied having admitted any wrongdoing in the Strauss case.
Another former OSU student and one of the plaintiffs, Steve Snyder-Hill, plans to watch the deposition on Friday at his lawyer's office in Columbus. Snyder-Hill was abused by Strauss at a campus clinic in 1995. It is planned to depose every OSU employee alleged to have known about Strauss' abuse, including those named in the complaints.
Former Athletic Director Andy Geiger was deposed in June 2023, and he is one of several people whom student-athletes allege they told about the abuse when it was happening. The Supreme Court refused to reconsider a lower court ruling that allowed former students to sue OSU, paving the way for their lawyers to question Jordan and other OSU employees about Strauss.
Mike DiSabato, who wrestled for Jordan and publicly accused him of turning a blind eye to the abuse, does not expect Jordan to say anything more than he already has. Jordan's spokesperson released a statement saying that Jordan never saw or heard of any abuse, and if he had, he would have dealt with it.
Jordan is not a defendant in the lawsuits, but he is referred to in some of them alleging he was aware of the abuse. The deposition will aim to gather information about Jordan's knowledge of the allegations, but it remains to be seen whether it will provide any definitive answers.
In the context of the ongoing civil lawsuit against Ohio State University, Rep. Jim Jordan is scheduled to be deposed under oath this week, with the specific aim of gathering information about his knowledge of the sexual abuse allegations against Dr. Richard Strauss. The deposition occurs amidst allegations that Jordan, a former assistant wrestling coach at OSU, failed to protect his wrestlers from Strauss, though a 2019 independent investigation by Perkins Coie law firm did not identify any evidence to support these claims.
