Simone Biles and other U.S. gymnasts who say they were sexually abused by Larry Nassar are suing the FBI for $1 billion over its mishandling of the case.
More than 90 of Nassar's alleged sexual assault victims are filing lawsuits against the agency for failing to act against the former Team USA gymnastics doctor after learning about allegations of him sexually abusing athletes, The New York Times and The Associated Press report.
Nassar was convicted on sexual abuse charges and sentenced to decades in prison. But in 2021, a Justice Department inspector general found the FBI made "numerous and fundamental" errors in the case, failing to respond to the allegations with the "utmost seriousness and urgency that they deserved and required" as soon as it received them.
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While testifying before Congress, Biles blamed "an entire system that enabled and perpetrated his abuse," and FBI Director Christopher Wray has admitted FBI agents "betrayed the core duty that they have — of protecting people." But in May, the Justice Department said it would not prosecute two former agents accused of making false statements about the case.
"The FBI knew that Larry Nassar was a danger to children when his abuse of me was first reported in September of 2015," gymnast Maggie Nichols said Tuesday. "For 421 days they worked with USA Gymnastics and USOPC to hide this information from the public and allowed Nassar to continue molesting young women and girls. It is time for the FBI to be held accountable."
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