An attorney for some of the plaintiffs called their settlement the "largest personal injury settlement against any university in history," CNN reported.
The University of Southern California announced Thursday that it will pay over $1.1. billion in retributions to patients of an on-campus gynecologist who allegedly sexually abused and preyed on generations of patients, according to reports.
University officials hope the payments will mark "the end of a painful and ugly chapter in the history of our university," the New York Times reported.
The allegations against 74-year-old George Tyndall span between 1989 and 2016. Three years ago, Tyndall turned in his medical license and was arrested when the Los Angeles Times published a Pulitzer-Prize winning investigation on the allegations in 2018. Since then, hundreds of women claiming they victims have come forward.
The total sum of money is from three different settlements, the Times noted. The university in 2018 had agreed to pay $215 million when about 500 women came forward and sued the university, ABC reported. The payouts could range from $2,500 to $250,000, regardless of whether the individuals made a formal accusation. A separate class-action suit against the university was settled but has not been made public, and a third was settled for $852 million with nearly 700 plaintiffs, according to the outlet.
An attorney for a portion of the 700 plaintiffs called their settlement the "largest personal injury settlement against any university in history" CNN reported.
The chairman of the university's Board of Trustees admitted in a statement that the university "fell short by not doing everything it could to protect those who matter most –– out students."
Tyndall has pleaded not guilty to 29 criminal charges, including 18 counts of sexual assault and 11 of sexual battery, the Los Angeles Times reported. He is awaiting trial.
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