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T H E G R A N D R A P I D S P R ES S
SILENT TREATMENT
NASSAR’S ALLEGED VICTIMS USA GYMNASTICS (USAG)
RACHAEL DENHOLLANDER: Kalamazoo gymnast treated at MSU sports-medicine clinic. Alleges she was abused in 2000 at least five times when she was 15, and she told a Kalamazoo-area USA Gymnastics coach in 2002. In addition to genital penetration, alleges Nassar massaged her breasts and became aroused at least once. JANE AA DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports-medicine clinic, USA Gymnastic events and Karolyi Ranch in Texas between 2012 and 2016 when she was ages 13 to 17. Alleges she was abused at the MSU clinic, Karolyi Ranch and USAG events. JANE LM DOE: Former member of U.S. national team from 2004 to 2010, when she was between the ages of 12 and 18. Alleges she was abused during treatments at USA Gymnastics National Team Training Center at Karolyi Ranch in Huntsville, Texas, and on road trips for competitions.
JANE D DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports medicine clinic from 2004 to 2007 when she was 12 to 15 years old. Alleges she was abused approximately eight times and has had “severe urinary tract infections” as result.
RACHAEL DENHOLLANDER JANE AA DOE UNNAMED
JANE LM DOE JANE JD DOE
HOLT
USAG DR. NASSAR
HOLT COMMUNITY (HOLT)
UNNAMED VICTIM: Family friend who says she was assaulted between 1998 and 2004 when she was 6 to 12. Says abuse occurred in Nassar’s home. Nassar has been charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct in this case.
JANE X DOE: MSU track and cross country athlete with injured hamstring. Alleges she was abused in 1999, and she complained to her trainers and athletic staff.
TWISTARS JANE AC DOE
MSU
JANE G DOE JANE J DOE
JANE J. DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports medicine clinic in 2005-06 when she was 16-17 years old. Alleges she was abused at least twice at MSU sports medicine clinic and at least once at Twistars facility during USAG event. Alleges she develop bacterial infection after treatment.
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY (MSU)
JANE M DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports medicine from 1999 to 2002 when she was 14 to 16 years old. Says she was abused “on more than one occasion” and abuse included Nassar touching her breasts. JANE O DOE: Figure skater treated at MSU sports medicine clinic from 2000 to 2008 when she was 11 to 17. Says she was abused on “more than one occasion” and abuse included Nassar touching her breasts. JANE A DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports-medicine clinic. Alleges she was treated by Nassar from 2011 to 2014 when she was 12 to 15, and abused during an appointment in 2014.
JANE F DOE: Soccer and basketball player treated at MSU sports medicine clinic. Alleges she was abused once during 2004 when she was 16 to 17. Says abuse included massaging her breast. She filed a report with the Meridian Township police.
JANE R DOE: Swimmer treated at MSU sportsmedicine clinic from 2007-08 when she was 14 to 15 years old. Alleges she was abused on “several occasions.”
TWISTARS
JANE AC DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports-medicine clinic and USA Gymnastic events sponsored by Twistars from 1999 to 2003 when she was ages 14 to 17. Alleges she was abused “8 to 10 times” at the clinic and at USAG events.
JANE S. DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports medicine clinic from 2009 to 2014 when she was 9 to 14. Alleges she was abused “on more than one occasion” at MSU clinic and once at Twistars in 2009.
KATHERINE PAYNE: Detroit-area patient at MSU sports medicine clinic. Alleges she was abused between 1996 and 1999 when she was 14 to 16.
JANE K DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports-medicine clinic in 2014 and in 2016 when she was 13 to 14 years old. Says she was abused “on approximately two or three occasions.”
JANE JD DOE: 2000 Olympic bronze medalist. Alleges she was abused between 1994 and 2000, when she was a minor. Says abuse occurred while she was training in California and while traveling for competitions.
JANE G DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports medicine clinic. Alleges she was abused “on several occasions” between 1999 and 2003 when she was 14 to 17 years old. Says abuse occurred “on several occasions” at MSU sports medicine clinic and “at least once” during USAG event at Twistars.
JANE C DOE: U-M field hockey player from 1998-2001 and patient at MSU sports-medicine clinic in 2001 and in 2011 and 2012. Alleges she was abused during four separate appointments. Also alleges that Nassar touched her breasts.
JANE S DOE
JANE U DOE JANE M DOE
JANE F DOE
JANE P DOE
JANE 0 DOE
JANE K DOE
JANE H DOE
JANE A DOE
JANE R DOE
JANE V DOE
JANE D DOE
JANE X DOE
JANE E DOE
JANE C DOE
JANE Y DOE
JANE N DOE
KATHERINE PAYNE
TIFFANY THOMAS LOPEZ
UNNAMED VICTIM
JANE Y DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sports-medicine clinic between 2009 and 2014. when she was age 10 to 15. Alleges she was abused approximately four times. Also alleges that Jane Y Doe’s mother saw Nassar was sexually aroused “on more than one occasion.” TIFFANY THOMAS LOPEZ: MSU softball player who alleges she was abused in 1999 and 2000, and she complained to three MSU trainers. JANE U DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sportsmedicine clinic from 2002 to 2011, when she was 9 to 17. Alleges she was abused “on several occasions” at the MSU clinic and once during a visit to Nassar’s home. JANE P DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sportsmedicine clinic. Alleges she was abused “five or six” times in 2011 when she was 11. JANE H DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sportsmedicine clinic. Alleges she was abused during a treatment in 1998 when she was 16. JANE V DOE: A gymnast treated at MSU’s sports-medicine clinic and “other locations from 2015 to 2016 when she was 12. Alleges she was abused “approximately 20 to 30 times.” Her mother allegedly saw Nassar aroused “on more than one occasion” while he was treating Jane V Doe. JANE E DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sportsmedicine clinic during 2006-07 when she was 14. Alleges she was abused approximately six times. JANE N DOE: Gymnast treated at MSU sportsmedicine clinic. Alleges she was abused in 2002 “on more than one occasion.” UNNAMED VICTIM: MSU student athlete who filed police report in 2014.
Were they medically legitimate treatments? By Emily Lawler elawler@mlive.com
As former Michigan State University sports medicine doctor Larry Nassar faces dozens of criminal complaints and civil lawsuits alleging sexual abuse during treatment, a key question is whether those treatments were medically legitimate. In multiple lawsuits from more than 25 women, the alleged victims describe a pattern to the visits to Nassar for treatment. Many were athletes and saw Nassar, a doctor of osteopathic medicine, for issues such as lower back and hamstring pain. And in most of the cases, the women claim Nassar would digitally penetrate them. “Nassar digitally penetrated Plaintiff Jane A. Doe’s vagina multiple times without prior notice and without gloves or lubricant,” reads one plaintiff’s complaint in a civil suit filed in the U.S. District Court Western District of Michigan in January. Other alleged victims, all young women, describe him digitally penetrating their anuses or massaging their breasts. Those who questioned the techniques — to athletic staff, coaches or other authority figures — were told they were recognized medical procedures, according to legal filings. Intravaginal procedures do happen, although they are not common, according to a statement from
“You advise the patient what you’re going to do. You get consent. He never did that.” Stephen Drew, a Grand Rapids attorney
the American Osteopathic Association. These treatments are often an extension of osteopathic manipulative therapy (OMT). “In most cases, patients are clothed during OMT. A small number of DOs who focus their practices on OMT are trained to do intra-pelvic procedures to address specific types of pelvic pain, although it is not at all common,” the group said in a statement in response to inquiries about Nassar’s techniques. The group declined to comment further. It’s not clear which exact procedure Nassar may have been performing. Victims claim in their legal filings he failed to explain the procedure before performing it, and many said the treatment was never listed on their medical charts. More than 50 women have filed criminal complaints against Nassar alleging sexual assault, including digital penetration, and at least 26 have filed civil lawsuits. No other sports medicine doctors at MSU perform intravaginal procedures on patients, according to MSU spokesman Jason Cody.
Those accusing Nassar of abuse in interviews and legal filings point to what they say are red flags that his treatment was not a legitimate medical procedure: He didn’t wear gloves, use lubricant, always have a third party in the room or get consent from patients. Doctors interviewed for this story were hesitant to talk specifically about Nassar’s medical techniques, since there are recognized forms of intravaginal manipulation that help relieve pain for patients. Some common ones include pelvic floor therapy and myofascial release, both of which focus on manually adjusting muscles inside the vagina. Dr. Jamie Bartley, an osteopathic urologist for Beaumont Health Systems in metro Detroit, performs manual examinations of pelvic floor muscles inside the vagina, and sometimes refers patients with back, hip or pelvic pain to physical therapists for pelvic floor therapy. She and Dr. J. Bryan Dixon, a sports-med-
icine doctor in Marquette, said it is important practitioners explain the procedure to patients and get their consent before performing intravaginal manipulations. “In some patients, it’s definitely indicated and very helpful, as long as it’s performed with mutual consent,” Bartley said. Rachael Denhollander, who said she was abused by Nassar in 2000 and has filed a lawsuit against him, said she had physical therapy on her pelvic floor after the birth of her third child and “it was nothing like what Nassar was doing.” Denhollander, like many alleged victims, claims Nassar never informed her of the procedure or asked for consent. A scientific paper published in the Journal of Obstetric Gynecology and Neonatal Nursing in 2012 describes treatment for Myofascial pelvic pain, or pain found in the pelvic floor. It’s characterized by “trigger points,” small areas in pelvic floor muscles that are painful and can refer pain to other locations as well. Authors Elizabeth Anne Pastore and Wendy B. Katzman wrote that internal muscle assessment involves a practitioner using a glove to avoid contamination and palpitating a woman’s pelvic floor. Initial entry may be painful, the authors note, and doctors should SEE TREATMENTS, D5