Olympic team osteoplastic physician Dr. Larry Nassar was sentenced 40 to 175 years imprisonment for the sexual assault of more than 150 girls. The judge who sentenced him said Nassar never deserves to walk outside of a prison again.
“As much as it was the honor and privilege to hear the sister survivors, it was my honor and privilege to sentence you,” Judge Rosemarie Aquilina said. “You have not owned yet what you did. I would not send my dogs to you sir. I’ve just signed your death warrant,” she added.
Nassar abused most of these girls during their medical examinations. Many of the girls were Olympic athletes and some of the girls were as young as 6 years old.
The last person to come forward was the first person to accuse Nassar, Rachael Denhollander. “Larry is the most dangerous type of abuser,” Denhollander said. “One who is capable of manipulating his victims through coldly calculated grooming methodologies, presenting the most wholesome and caring external persona as a deliberate means to ensure a steady stream of young children to assault.”
One week after the testimony of the victims, Nassar apologized for what he did. “What I am feeling pales in comparison to the pain, trauma and emotional destruction that all of you are feeling,” he said in the courtroom. “There are no words to describe the depth and breadth of how sorry I am for what has occurred.”
Nassar was previously sentenced to 60 years for possession of child pornography. For that court case, he submitted a letter that contrasted this apology.
In the letter, Nassar complained about his treatment in the case saying the people that accused him were only seeking money and attention from the media. “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,” he wrote.
Ten-time world championship medalist and Olympic star Simone Biles posted on Twitter saying she wrestled with the decision to go public with her story of sexual abuse since the Nassar scandal broke.
She too was sexually abused by Nassar.
“Most of you know me as a happy, giggly and energetic girl,” Biles wrote. “But lately I’ve felt a bit broken and the more I try to shut off the voice in my head, the louder it screams. I am not afraid to tell my story anymore.”
Shortly after Judge Aquilina sentenced Nassar, the Olympic committee issued a statement saying they will take additional steps to investigate Nassar’s conduct and make sure that athletes will not be harmed in the future. They also called for every member of the USA Gymnastics board to resign.