USC To Pay Record $1.1 Billion Sex Abuse Settlement

LOS ANGELES, CA — USC will pay more than $1.1 billion to settle claims of sexual abuse on behalf of hundreds of women against disgraced former campus gynecologist George Tyndall. The settlements announced Thursday amount to the largest sex abuse settlements in the history of higher education. However, some alleged victims are demanding more, calling for the criminal convictions of Tyndall and his alleged enablers at the university.

Attorneys for 702 women announced a settlement of $842.4 million in court documents Thursday. The plaintiffs will receive an average of $1.2 million each. Added to previous settlements on behalf of other alleged victims, and the university will ultimately pay out more than $1.1 billion for its mishandling of complaints involving Tyndall going back decades. Tyndall, who is still awaiting trial for dozens of felony charges of sexual penetration, sexual battery, sexual battery by fraud and sexual penetration of an unconscious person, has denied wrongdoing.

USC officials, however, admitted a measure of culpability Thursday.

Rick Caruso, chair of the USC Board of Trustees, which has already ratified the settlement, conceded that the university "fell short by not doing everything it could to protect those who matter most to us -- our students -- and I am sorry for the pain this caused the very people we were obligated to protect."

USC President Carol Folt apologized to the women in a written statement.

"I am deeply sorry for the pain experienced by these valued members of the USC community," she said. "We appreciate the courage of all who came forward and hope this much-needed resolution provides some relief to the women abused by George Tyndall."

The plaintiff's attorneys credited the women for exposing the longstanding abuse.

"This historic settlement came about through the bravery of hundreds of women and girls who had the courage to stand up and refuse to be silenced," said attorney John Manly, whose firm represented 234 of the 702 plaintiffs in the main settlement. "We appreciate the diligent efforts of the survivors' attorneys who worked with us to obtain this measure of justice and healing. The enormous size of this settlement speaks to the immense harm done to our clients and the culpability of USC. It is the direct result of a billionaire-dominated Board of Trustees that placed fundraising, prestige and the `USC Brand' above the safety of vulnerable female students. It is the sincere hope of all of the survivors that the legacy of this settlement will cause a dramatic change in this toxic culture."

USC officials have long denied allegations of a cover-up relating to Tyndall. Still, they implemented new protocols at the Student Health Center to ensure any complaints are investigated and resolved by appropriate university officials and authorities. Additionally, the university said it has hired female, board-certified physicians and introduced patient education materials about sensitive examinations.

"We are steadfast in our commitment to assuring that these steps have the intended impact and reflect real change," Caruso said. "Today marks the end of a painful and ugly chapter in the history of our university. More importantly, it signals a critical step forward in strengthening and reweaving the fabric of our community."

Complaints about Tyndall's behavior had been made by students and staff for decades before a Los Angeles Times expose brought the accusations to light in 2018. Dating back to the 90s, Tyndall's patients had complained of inappropriate touching, comments and photographing of patients — particularly young Asain women.

Despite the years of complaints, he was allowed to continue seeing thousands of patients until a frustrated nurse reported him to the campus rape crisis center. The nurse's allegations led to his suspension and ultimate retirement and financial settlement.

When that happened, the university didn't inform Tyndall's patients of the allegations against hiM nor did it report the alleged abuse to the Medical Board of California.

Following the Times story, hundreds of women came forward with allegations of abuse by Tyndall under the guise of gynecological exams during his time at the university.

The school, at the time, blamed the problem on the late director of the student health center.

“Several of the complaints were concerning enough that it is not clear today why the former health center director permitted Tyndall to remain in his position,” the university told the Times in 2018.

Critics of the university alleged it sought to cover up the abuse rather than do right by their students. The fallout led to the ousting of then USC President C.L. Max Nikias.

Lucy Chi, who said she was abused by Tyndall during a 2012 examination when she was a USC graduate student, called on Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon and newly appointed state Attorney General Rob Bonta to investigate the possibility of bringing charges against members of the USC administration who allegedly "covered up" the earliest complaints against Tyndall.

USC "allowed thousands of women to be abused by the gynecologist," Chi said. "And when they knew, they covered it up. And no one in the administration or leadership has been held accountable. The only person that's been charged is George Tyndall."

Chi alleged that she was targeted by Tyndall because she is Asian- American. The former gynecologist "specifically preyed upon Asian women," she said.

Nicole Haynes, another plaintiff in the case, said, "This is a tremendous vindication for all the women who suffered abuse at the hands of a disgusting doctor who had to endure inaction and a cover-up by USC."

The various lawsuits have alleged that Tyndall used his position as a trusted and credentialed medical professional to commit a series of abusive acts toward his patients, such as forcing patients to undress completely in front of him while he watched, groping patients' breasts and making racist, misogynistic and sexually harassing comments to patients.

The lawsuits contended that USC was aware of Tyndall's sexual abuse of female student patients for decades and continued to grant him unfettered sexual access to the young students in his and USC's care

Thursday's settlement comes on top of a $215 million class-action resolution reached in federal litigation last year, meaning the university has agreed to pay more than $1.1 billion to resolve lawsuits involving Tyndall. The federal court settlement was expected to provide all class members -- about 16,000 former patients who received women's health services from Tyndall -- compensation of $2,500 and up.

But Tyndall and USC were also sued in state court by the hundreds of other women who opted out of the federal settlement. Their attorneys were critical of the federal resolution, saying it actually provided only limited payments to individual plaintiffs, with none of them receiving more than $96,000.

The actual payment amounts to each victim will be determined by a retired judge who will review each plaintiff's claims and allocate the settlement proceeds. Attorneys said some plaintiffs will wind up being paid several million dollars, while others will receive in the low- to mid-six figures.

"I'm sure our clients will be glad they didn't settle for less," attorney Howard Janet said in a statement. "Our results are a testament to the extraordinary work done by these plaintiff lawyers to ferret out the truth. It's also a reflection of this country's mindset after the Me Too movement. Institutions who let sexual predators operate with impunity are finally being held accountable."

According to plaintiffs' attorneys, the settlement will be paid in two installments in August 2021 and August 2022, with a letter of credit securing the second payment.

In a letter to the USC community, Folt said the settlement amount is "significant, and we will face some difficult financial choices in the near term."

"However, we have a strong balance sheet and resources to support our academic priorities," she wrote. "We will fund the settlement over the next two fiscal years largely through a combination of litigation reserves, insurance proceeds, deferred capital spending, sale of non-essential assets and careful management of non-essential expenses. No philanthropic gifts, endowment funds or tuition will be redirected from their intended purposes."

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.