Michigan sports doctor Larry Nassar has been sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison for sexually assaulting gymnasts and other young women and girls, capping a remarkable seven-day hearing that brought more than 150 victims or their families to court, including Olympians.
They made riveting statements while confronting Nassar in a Lansing, Michigan, courtroom. He worked at Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians.
He had pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting seven females in the Lansing area between 1998 and 2015, but the hearing was open to all of his accusers.
They said he would molest them while they were seeking help for various injuries. Nassar also has a 60-year prison sentence for child pornography crimes.
After the sentence, handed down by Judge Rosemarie Aquilina on Wednesday, Jan. 24, she told Nassar: “I just signed your death warrant.”
‘Stories are being fabricated’
The judge who sentenced a Michigan sports doctor to decades in prison read a letter that raises questions about whether he’s truly remorseful.
A courtroom packed with victims gasped Wednesday as Judge Rosemarie Aquilina read Larry Nassar’s letter, which was written before the seven-day sentencing hearing.
The letter stated, “Hell hath no fury than a woman scorned” and said that “stories are being fabricated” by victims.
After reading the letter, the judge asked Nassar whether he wanted to withdraw his guilty plea. He declined.
Moments earlier, Nassar said the testimony of more than 150 accusers has “shaken me to my core.”
Nassar was a doctor at Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians. He admitted molesting girls and young women with his hands under the guise of treatment for sports injuries.
The Associated Press
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