Witness Tells Ohio Legislature Jim Jordan Knew About Sexual Abuse of Wrestlers but Covered It Up
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), one of former President Trump’s most avid defenders, may soon need a defender of his own. An investigation by a committee of the Ohio state legislature recently heard damning witness testimony against the former wrestling coach for aiding and abetting the cover-up of sexual abuse in the Ohio State University (OSU) athletic program.
The hearing was the sixth one held by the Ohio House Civil Justice Committee during its consideration of HB 249, a bill to “Enable A Victim to Sue the University if Abused by the University’s Doctor.” Testimony by Adam DiSabato, former captain of the OSU wrestling team in the 90s, told the committee that he personally told Jordan about sexual abuse by team doctor Richard Strauss’s and was told to keep his mouth shut.
Jordan served as an assistant coach from 1987 to 1995, during the time when Strauss served as team doctor. The February 11 hearing was being held to decide whether legislation should be enacted that would permit abuse survivors to sue OSU for damages stemming from sexual abuse by a university-employed doctor.
Such lawsuits are allowed under Title IX, but the statute of limitations has expired in Strauss’s case. Strauss served as the team doctor from 1979 to 1999. The abuse was not reported until 1998 when Strauss resigned. He was never charged and committed suicide in 2005.
HR 249 creates an exception to the statute of limitation for sexual abuse victims. According to testimony by Lauren Huddleston, a representative of Rights for Ohio State Victims, the bill is modeled after a similar bill passed by the Michigan legislature after sexual abuses by gymnastics team doctor Larry Nasser came to light. California also passed a comparable law when they learned about sexual assaults on female patients by University of Southern California student health center gynecologist George Tyndall.
In the Strauss case, an OSU study found that the doctor had abused at least 177 athletes during his 20-year tenure. Previous estimates from wrestlers put the number of assaults or rapes at between 1,500 and 2,000. NBC News reported in 2019 that 350 former wrestlers were suing OSU for permitting Strauss’s behavior. Charges against the doctor ranged from groping during medical exams to rape, to examining a patient’s genitals if he came in with a cold, to voyeurism in locker rooms and showers. The study, conducted by a private law firm, admitted that university personnel knew about the complaints against Strauss since 1979 but did nothing about them.
Jordan was not mentioned by name in the OSU report, which made no “conclusive determinations” about Jordan’s knowledge of the complaints.
But where was Jordan when this aberrant behavior was going on? To use the old Watergate expression, “what did he know and when did he know it?” And was he involved in a cover-up?
Many former wrestlers place Jordan at or close to the scene of the crimes. Former captain DiSabato told House Committee members that Jordan and others knew about open-shower facilities that made Strauss’s conduct possible. “I’m very disgusted in the way this has been handled. Former coaches ignored me. What they did to kids is awful. And the University backed them up. I went to Jim Jordan as a captain, begging them to do something. They did nothing.”
DiSabato testified that Jordan personally called him in 2018 when the story came out. He said “Jim Jordan called me crying, groveling, begging me to go against my brother, begging me, crying for a half-hour. That’s the kind of cover-up that’s going on.” At the hearing, he also stated, “I went to them as a captain, begging them to do something. They did not. They told me they went to their superiors. Their superiors told them to be happy where we’re at, to keep our mouths shut.” DiSabato’s brother Mike was also on the wrestling team and was also an early whistleblower.
Jordan denied the allegations. So did Trump. In 2018, the ex-President told reporters, “I believe him,” when asked about the accusations against the Congressman. Trump also awarded Jordan the Presidential Medal of Freedom in January. Previously, Trump stated, “Jim Jordan is one of the most outstanding people I’ve met since I’ve been in Washington. I believe him 100 percent. No question in my mind. I believe Jim Jordan 100 percent. He’s an outstanding man.”
Eight other wrestlers have stated that Jordan knew of, but ignored, the abuse, calling it an “open secret.” One of them, Dunyasha Yetts, was the first person who publicly said that he had directly complained about Strauss to Jordan. The story was corroborated by another wrestler who also revealed that Jordan’s locker adjoined the one assigned to and used by Strauss.
Yetts, quoted in Sports Illustrated, said, “I remember I had a thumb injury and went into Strauss’ office and he started pulling down my wrestling shorts.” Yetts continued, “I’m like, what the f--- are you doing? And I went out and told Russ and Jim (Jordan) what happened. I was not having it. They went in and talked to Strauss.” Russ refers to head coach Russ Hellickson.
In November 2019, 43 men, including former OSU medical students, student-athletes from university, club and intramural hockey teams, and high school students who attended a summer wrestling camp filed a Title IX lawsuit against the university. Plaintiffs were seeking compensatory damages, court costs and expenses. But they were prevented from a resolution because of the statute of limitations. OSU, as a state university, would have to pay any damages. Representatives of OSU said it was already covering the cost of counseling services and treatment for affected athletes. In 2019, the federal court ordered mediation, which may be on-going, but Huddleston could not give an update due to its confidentiality requirement.
One plaintiff is a wrestling referee, only identified as John Doe 42, who joined the lawsuit against the University that was filed in the Southern District Court of Ohio. In it, Doe 42 claimed that when he told Jordan that Strauss masturbated in front of him in the shower, Jordan commented, “Yeah, that’s Strauss,” and at other times the complaint said that when Strauss’s actions were reported, officials responded. “Yeah, yeah, we know.” Doe claims that Strauss’s behavior was common knowledge, although he was shocked when he performed his sexual acts in front of a referee rather than at a student.
DiSabato said another one of Jordan’s actions provides additional evidence of his knowledge of Strauss’s abuses. Jordan himself awarded a certificate each year dubbed “King of the Sauna.” It went to the athlete who provided the cleverest banter in the shower. How could he decide the winner of this dubious award unless he was hanging out in the sauna as DiSabato charged? The Columbus Dispatch confirmed the award but stated that Jordan said he never saw any abuse. DiSabato said the sauna was where members of OSU’s homosexual community hung out.
Then there are reports of attempted cover-ups that have reportedly been occurring since allegations surfaced in 2018. In May 2019, Mike DiSabato also stated that Jordan’s second cousin aimed to “intimidate and retaliate” against him for his public statements against the Congressman. Later that year, Jordan, his younger brother and another former wrestling coach were accused of witness tampering and intimidation. Jordan denies those charges as well.
