Former Ohio State Students Sue University For Alleged Abuse

COLUMBUS, OH - A group of 37 former Ohio State University students are suing the school for not stopping alleged abuse by Dr. Richard Strauss.

An independent investigation commissioned by the university said that Strauss, an employee of OSU, abused 177 students during his two decade tenure. The investigation concluded that university officials knew of accusations against Strauss as early as 1979, but failed to take meaningful action against the doctor until 1996.

The lawsuit accuses university officials of allowing Strauss' abuse to happen, and also actively covering up for the doctor. The majority of the 37 plaintiffs say they were abused by Strauss 20-50 times.

Strauss died in 2005. The independent investigation into his conduct found that university officials never reported him to law enforcement.

"On behalf of the university, we offer our profound regret and sincere apologies to each person who endured Strauss' abuse," Ohio State President Michael Drake said in a statement when the investigation's findings were first published. "Our institution's fundamental failure at the time to prevent this abuse was unacceptable — as were the inadequate efforts to thoroughly investigate complaints raised by students and staff members."

Read more about the independent investigation's conclusions on Strauss and how the university handled accusations of abuse.