EAST LANSING, Mich. (WOOD) — Three of the women who have been critical of Michigan State University's handling of convicted serial molester Larry Nassar are not surprised to see his former boss face his own criminal charges.
"It just confirmed that predators and sexual assault are rampant at MSU," Larissa Boyce told 24 Hour News 8 over the phone Tuesday following William Strampel's arraignment on chargesof misconduct in office, criminal sexual conduct and two counts of neglect of duty. "It goes all the way up to the top."
Hundreds of women say Nassar, a former sports doctor who worked for MSU and USA Gymnastics, sexually abused them under the guise of providing medical treatment. He's serving 60 years in a federal prison for child pornography charges and was also sentenced to up to 300 years after pleading guilty to state-level sexual abuse charges in two counties. The accusations against him date back two decades.
Boyce is believed to be the first person to report Nassar for sexual assault, doing so in the late 1990s to then-MSU gymnastics coach Kathie Klages.
"Where's the oversight? MSU knew and did nothing. Strampel was part of the problem, too, so how high up does it go? It just made me think, 'Who's next?'" Boyce added.