From Congress to Courtroom: Jim Jordan Pulled Into Ohio State Sex Abuse Storm

Rep. Jim Jordan, the influential Ohio Republican and former assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State University, is set to be deposed this Friday about his alleged failure to protect athletes from sexual abuse by Dr. Richard Strauss.

Four plaintiffs in lawsuits against OSU revealed to NBC News that Jordan will face questions under oath, marking the first time he will testify in connection with the scandal.

Jordan, who coached at OSU from 1986 to 1994, has “repeatedly and publicly denied any knowledge” that Strauss was preying on athletes. According to his spokesperson Russell Dye, “Chairman Jordan never saw or heard of any abuse, and if he had, he would have dealt with it.”

However, several former wrestlers contest Jordan’s denials. Mike DiSabato, the first to publicly accuse Jordan of ignoring the abuse, said, “I assume he’s going to triple down and follow the same script he followed back in 2018 when he went on Fox and denied knowing about any abuse, denied being told of any abuse, never heard the word ‘abuse’.”

DiSabato hopes that Jordan will finally admit to knowing about Strauss’s actions: “He knew Strauss was doing unnecessary prostate exams, doing unnecessary genital exams, taking multiple showers with athletes, all while being employed by a university funded by the state of Ohio.”

Another survivor, Steve Snyder-Hill, said bluntly, “I expect him to lie under oath. I don’t know a nicer way to put it.” He also challenged Jordan’s claim of ignorance: “Jordan had a locker two down from Strauss, and Jordan claims he didn’t know? That’s hard to believe.”

A 2019 investigation by Perkins Coie law firm concluded that coaches and administrators “knew for two decades that Strauss was molesting male athletes and other students but failed to sound the alarm or stop him.”

Despite OSU having paid out $60 million in settlements and publicly apologizing, the university in 2023 denied any wrongdoing, asserting that the settlements do not imply liability.

As lawsuits continue, Adele Kimmel of Public Justice stated, “We plan to depose every OSU employee alleged to have known about Strauss’ abuse, including the employees named in the complaints.”