Prince Andrew was an abuser, Epstein accuser says in TV interview

Virginia Giuffre claims prince was participant in disgraced financier’s exploitation of her

An accuser of Jeffrey Epstein has alleged Prince Andrew was “an abuser, a participant” in the disgraced US financier’s exploitation of her as a teenager, in her first television interview.

Virginia Giuffre, formerly Roberts, who was pictured with Prince Andrew in a now notorious photograph, spoke to the US network TV station NBC News about her involvement with Epstein, a convicted sex offender who killed himself in a New York jail in August while facing fresh child sex trafficking charges.

The interview was due to air late on Friday night in the US but there were clips of it on the morning news shows. In them Giuffre tells how Epstein directed her to have sex with other powerful men in his orbit, including, she said, the Queen’s second oldest son, Andrew. read more »

Illinois opens 24 new investigations of alleged clergy abuse

The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services has opened 24 new investigations into alleged misconduct by Catholic priests amid concerns that cases turned over by the Archdiocese of Chicago weren’t properly reviewed.

The Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday that the archdiocese turned over more than 1,000 cases under a 2006 agreement requiring it to notify the agency every time it became aware of an abuse allegation, even if the accuser was no longer a minor. read more »

Lyft hit with another horrifying sexual assault lawsuit

The ride-hailing company is failing to keep its passengers safe, victim accuses

A woman who says she was raped by her Lyft driver in 2017 is suing the ride-hailing company in California for failure to keep its passengers safe. It is the latest case about safety in the ride-hailing industry, and the latest charge against Lyft, which was sued by 14 women earlier this month alleging rape complaints against drivers. read more »

USC President Carol Folt’s daunting task: Fix a university battered by scandal

Carol L. Folt, who will be inaugurated Friday morning as the University of Southern California’s 12th president, faces one of the most daunting assignments in American higher education — fixing USC.

There are some 700 civil lawsuits against USC pending in state Superior Court over the alleged sexual abuse of students by former campus gynecologist Geoge Tyndall. In addition, the university brokered a $215-million federal class action settlement last year to compensate all of Tyndall’s former patients. Tyndall, who has denied wrongdoing, awaits trial on criminal charges. read more »