Former United States gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar stabbed in Florida federal prison
Former United States gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar has been stabbed in a Florida federal prison. Sources told CBS News. Sources said he was recovering in hospital after the attack.
According to the Associated Press (AP), which first reported the attack, sources said it occurred during a row with other inmates at the Coleman prison in Florida. One source told the AP that Nassar was stabbed in the back and the chest.
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| Larry Nassar, a former team USA Gymnastics doctor who pleaded guilty in November 2017 to sexual assault, listens to victims impact statements during his sentencing in the Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Michigan, on Jan. 31, 2018. Photo by Rebecca Cook/Reuters |
The sources were not authorized to publicly discuss details of the attack or the ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Still, No Confirmation from the Bureau of Prisons, citing "Privacy and Security"
In a statement to CBS News, the Bureau of Prisons declined to confirm that Nassar had been stabbed, citing privacy and security reasons. However, the bureau confirmed that on Sunday afternoon an inmate was attacked at Coleman II United States Penitentiary (USP), in Sumterville, Florida.
Staff then responded and immediately carried out rescue measures. Staff requested Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and life-saving efforts resumed. The inmate was taken by EMS to a local hospital for further treatment and evaluation.
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"No other staff or inmates were injured and the public was never in danger," the bureau said as quoted by CBS News, Tuesday (11/7/2023).
An internal investigation is ongoing.
"All visits at this facility have been suspended until further notice," according to a banner on the prison's website Monday morning.
Nassar was sentenced to decades in prison for sexually abusing gymnasts, including Olympic medalists. He is serving decades in prison for his convictions in state and federal courts.
He admitted sexually assaulting athletes when he worked at Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics, which coaches Olympians. Separately, Nassar pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography.
More than 100 women, including Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles, collectively requested more than $1 billion from the federal government over the FBI's failure to stop Nassar when agents learned of the allegations against him in 2015. He was arrested by Michigan State University police in 2016, more than a year later.
In June 2022, the Michigan Supreme Court rejected a final appeal from Nassar. Nassar's lawyer said he was treated unfairly in 2018 and deserved a new trial, based on vengeful comments from the judge who called him a "monster" who would "wither" in prison like the evil witch in "The Wizard of Oz."
"I just signed your death warrant," Ingham County Judge Rosemarie Aquilina said of Nassar's 40-year sentence.
The state Supreme Court said Nassar's appeal was a "close question" and a "concern" over the judge's conduct. But the court also noted that Aquilina, despite her provocative comments, stuck to the sentencing agreement made by lawyers in the case.
"We refuse to expend additional judicial resources and further subject the victims in this case to additional trauma where the questions at hand are nothing more than academic exercises," the court said in a two-page order.
More than 150 victims spoke or made statements during an extraordinary seven-day trial in Aquilina court more than four years ago.
"It's over. Almost six years after I filed the police report, it's finally over," said Rachael Denhollander, the first woman to publicly accuse Nassar.