Politics

Engler Accuses Lawmakers of Interfering in Nassar Suits; Victims Say He Lies

March 16, 2018, 7:22 AM

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John Engler (Wikipedia photo by Chuck Grimmett)

The fallout from the  Larry Nassar scandal continues.

In the latest development, interim Michigan State University President John Engler on Thursday argued lawmakers slowed and “interfered” in legal settlement talks with Larry Nassar sexual abuse victims by taking up legislation he said gives attorneys more leverage in negotiations with MSU,  report Jonathan Oosting and Kim Kozlowski of The Detroit News. 

That didn't sit well with Nassar victims and their attorneys, who accused him of lying. They disputed any suggestion the sexual assault prevention package in Lansing has kept them from the negotiating table or diminished their desire to settle claims out of court.

Engler spokesman John Truscott told the News that MSU had been negotiating with lawyers representing Nassar victims in civil lawsuits but talks broke down when the legislation was introduced in Lansing.

Pending legislation would extend the statute of limitations for victims and limit claims of governmental immunity by institutions like MSU.

The News reports:

Engler ridiculed some of the Senate-approved bills during testimony before the Appropriations Subcommittee on Higher Education, arguing they “have nothing to do with supporting survivors at all” and are instead “all about changing the leverage” in settlement talks.

“You actually slowed down the momentum. That’s what you did,” Engler said in an exchange with Sen. Curtis Hertel Jr., D-East Lansing, who asked the former governor about similar comments his spokesman made in an article published by The Detroit News.

“At the same time, you put literally every business in the public sector and the private sector at risk of untold billions of dollars by liability,” he said. “The dramatic changes in the statute of limitations, governmental immunity and filing puts volunteers at risk.”

Lawmakers defended the bills, now awaiting consideration in the House, while victims and their attorneys lambasted Engler for his claims about the legislation and its impact on settlement talks.

"These are flat-out lies," Rachael Denhollander, the first victim to publicly accuse Nassar, says on Facebook and Twitter. "There is no other way to put it."

The current lieutenant governor, a fellow Repoublican, also pushes back:

The pending legislation would retroactively extend the civil statute of limitations to allow lawsuits by minors who were assaulted at any point since 1997.

Engler, a state senator before serving as governor from 1991 to 2003, is no stranger to the legislative process.


Read more:  The Detroit News


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