Jim Jordan will now have to answer questions under oath about wrestling team scandal

16 July

Rep. Jim Jordan in Phoenix in December 2021 (Gage Skidmore)

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who chairs the powerful House Judiciary Committee, will soon be questioned under oath in a sworn deposition, according to a new report.

According to Columbus, Ohio-based NBC affiliate WCMH, Jordan will be questioned specifically about what he knew regarding former Ohio State University wrestling team doctor Richard Strauss' sexual abuse of student athletes. WCMH reported Wednesday that Jordan will be deposed this coming Friday in Washington D.C. as part of civil lawsuits former Ohio State wrestlers filed against the school.

In addition to Jordan, former Ohio State University athletic director Andy Geiger was also questioned about the scandal. While neither Jordan nor Geiger have been charged with any crimes, plaintiffs are alleging that they had knowledge of Strauss' abuse of athletes between 1979 and 1996. Geiger reportedly testified for approximately seven hours.

Jordan, who was the assistant coach of Ohio State's wrestling team between 1987 and 1995, has maintained that he knew nothing of Strauss' abuse.

"As everyone knows, Chairman Jordan never saw or heard of any abuse, and if he had, he would have dealt with it," a spokesperson for Jordan told WCMH.

An independent investigation conducted by the university found that Strauss — who died in 2005 — abused at least 177 male athletes during his time at Ohio State. In 2020, the school paid nearly $41 million to 162 survivors as the result of 12 different lawsuits stemming from Strauss' scandal. Five lawsuits are still pending. In the new HBO documentary "Surviving Ohio State," former wrestling referee Fred Feeney said Jordan knew about Strauss' behavior.

"Jim Jordan looked at me straight in my face and said, ‘It’s Strauss. You know what he does,’" Feeney said.

Click here to read WCMH's full report.

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