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The University of Southern California (USC) agreed to a $ 852 million settlement with more than 700 women who accused the university’s longtime campus gynecologist of sexual abuse.
Victims’ attorneys and USC announced the settlement on Thursday. Combined with an earlier settlement of a separate class action lawsuit, the school has agreed to pay more than $ 1 billion in claims against Dr. George Tyndall.
Tyndall, 74, faces 35 counts of alleged sexual misconduct between 2009 and 2016 at the university’s student health center. He has pleaded not guilty and is free on bail.
Hundreds of women have come forward to report their allegations to the police, but some cases did not meet the 10-year statute of limitations, while others fell below the level of criminal charges or lacked sufficient evidence to support them. initiate proceedings. Yet Tyndall faces up to 64 years in prison if convicted.
“I am deeply sorry for the pain felt by these esteemed members of the USC community,” USC President Carol L. Folt said in a statement. “We appreciate the courage of all who have come forward and hope that this much needed resolution will bring some relief to the women abused by George Tyndall.”
Folt took office in 2019 as part of an overhaul of USC leadership amid scandals of gynecologist bribery and college entrance.
According to lawyers for the plaintiffs, the $ 852 million civil settlement is considered the largest sexual abuse settlement against a college, as well as the largest personal injury settlement against a college or university. The lawyers say no confidentiality or nondisclosure agreement has been attached.
Tyndall has been filed for the settlement and has widely cited his rights against self-incrimination in responses, lawyers for the plaintiff said. Although he signed the settlement, he did not contribute any money to it and did not admit any wrongdoing.
“Dr. Tyndall continues to deny any wrongdoing,” said Leonard Levine, Tyndall’s attorney. “He has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges and remains confident that when the allegations are tested in court at a jury trial, he will be fully exonerated.”
In 2018, Michigan State University agreed to pay $ 500 million to settle the claims of more than 300 women and girls who said they were assaulted by sports doctor Larry Nassar. This settlement was considered the largest at the time, far exceeding the $ 100 million paid by Penn State University to settle the claims of at least 35 people who accused assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky of sexual abuse.
Separately, USC previously agreed to pay $ 215 million to settle a class action lawsuit that applies to approximately 18,000 women who were Tyndall patients. Individual payments to these victims range from $ 2,500 to $ 250,000, and were made regardless of whether the women formally accused Tyndall of harassment or assault. Final payments are expected to be issued this month.
Allegations against Tyndall first surfaced in a 2018 Los Angeles Times investigation, which found the doctor had been the subject of sexual misconduct complaints to USC dating back to the 1990s.
He was not suspended until 2016, when a nurse reported him to a rape crisis center. He was able to quit quietly with a large payment the following year.
Tyndall surrendered his medical license in September 2019, according to records.
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