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Ohio State revokes doctor's status, plans sex abuse task force

The findings of the task force will be used to help address sexual abuse and prevention on college campuses
Credit: AP
Pedestrians pass through The Ohio State University's student union, Saturday, May 18, 2019, in Columbus, Ohio. Dr. Richard Strauss, a now-dead Ohio State team doctor sexually abused at least 177 male students from the 1970s through the 1990s, and numerous university officials got wind of what was going on over the years but did little or nothing to stop him, according to a report released by the school Friday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio State University trustees have posthumously revoked the emeritus status of a team doctor found to have sexually abused young men during his two decades there.

The decision Friday regarding Richard Strauss is a symbolic rebuke, stripping only the honorary label — something the university says it has never previously done.

A law firm investigating allegations recently concluded Strauss sexually abused at least 177 male students between 1979 and 1997, and that university officials heard concerns but did little to stop him.

President Michael Drake announced Friday that Ohio State is creating a task force to use the findings to help address sexual abuse and prevention on college campuses. Drake says the panel will include abuse survivors and experts.

Strauss retired in 1998 and killed himself in 2005. No one has publicly defended him.

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