Some lawmakers want pelvic exam consent forms to protect against sex abuse

Why are doctors pushing back?

Daniella Mohazab didn’t know what to expect from her first pelvic exam in 2016. The University of Southern California sophomore, then 19, was startled when her doctor examined her vagina for several minutes without gloves, but assumed it was standard procedure.

It wasn’t until two years later, when she read about Dr. George Tyndall’s alleged sexual abuse against USC students, that she realized she may have been sexually violated by him as well.

Driven by stories like Mohazab’s, California Assembly members Ian Calderon (D-Whittier) and Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Laguna Beach) have proposed a bill to require doctors to give first-time pelvic exam patients a pamphlet about how the exams are supposed to be conducted, and a phone number should they want to report misconduct to the state medical board. Doctors would face a fine if they did not collect a patient’s signature confirming they received the pamphlet. read more »

Yeshiva University Hit With Sexual Abuse Lawsuit

Thirty-eight former students of a Manhattan high school operated by Yeshiva University are suing the university over their claims they were sexually abused.

Thirty-eight former students of an Orthodox Jewish school in New York City operated by Yeshiva University sued Thursday over claims they were molested by two prominent rabbis in the 1960s, '70s and '80s.

The suit, filed in state Supreme Court in Manhattan, alleges that the university failed to protect students at Yeshiva University High School for Boys and promoted one of the rabbis to principal even after receiving abuse reports.

The lawsuit is one of hundreds that have been filed over child sexual abuse allegations since last week, when New York state opened a one-year window for suits previously barred by the state's statute of limitations. read more »

Prince Andrew was seen getting foot massage from young woman at Epstein's apartment – report

Prince Andrew was seen inside the New York apartment of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein getting a foot massage from a young woman, according to an email exchange between a prominent US literary agent and author and writer Evgeny Morozov. read more »

Jeffrey Epstein is dead. Prosecutors could still go after his inner circle if they helped him prey on young girls

Jeffrey Epstein's death in a jail suicide spared the wealthy financier from the possibility of decades in prison on a federal indictment that accused him of sexually trafficking girls as young as 14 in New York and Florida from 2002 to 2005.

It also deprived federal prosecutors in New York and the women who allege that Epstein sexually abused or raped them of their chief target for criminal and civil lawsuits.

Now the women, and possibly prosecutors, are examining potential court actions against other legal targets: the financier's ex-girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell and several of his former associates. At least six women who accused Epstein of sexual abuse have already filed lawsuits against his estate and associates. read more »

Diocese of Brooklyn hit with wave of Child Victims Act suits

Two more alleged victims came forward on Thursday with decades-old accusations against the Diocese of Brooklyn that they suffered sexual abuse by clergy and other church employees when they were children.

The two accusers filed suit in Brooklyn Supreme Court on Thursday, the latest in a wave of sex abuse lawsuits brought against the Diocese of Brooklyn and other organizations since the Child Victims Act went into effect on Aug14. read more »

Olympic skating coach Richard Callaghan banned for life due to sexual misconduct allegations

Callaghan, famed coach of Olympians such as Tara Lipinski and Todd Eldredge, was cited by a figure skating governing body for "misconduct involving a minor."

The lifetime ban from figure skating comes 12 days after a lawsuit was filed against Callaghan in San Diego by his former student, Adam Schmidt, 34. The lawsuit alleged that Callaghan, 73, sexually abused Schmidt from 1999 to 2001, starting when Schmidt was 14-years-old. read more »