Larry Nassar Victim Speaks Out About Prison Stabbing

Rachael Denhollander, the first victim to come forward about the abuse she suffered from former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar, spoke out on Monday after reports emerged that he had been stabbed in federal prison.

Nassar, who spent years as a team doctor for the U.S. national women's gymnastic team, is currently serving a de facto life sentence, having been sentenced to decades in prison multiple times at the state and federal level for abusing his position and sexually assaulting hundreds of young women in his care over the course of decades. Over 250 women came forward to accuse Nassar of molesting and assaulting them, including Olympians like McKayla Maroney, Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman.

The first woman to speak out about her abuse at Nassar's hands was Denhollander, a lawyer and former gymnast. On Monday, she took to Twitter with an extended thread of tweets reacting to the news that he had been stabbed at the United States Penitentiary (USP) Coleman II in Florida.

"Justice is conformity to what is right. It should be pursued and fought for," Denhollander wrote. "Forgiveness is releasing personal vengeance and desiring for the offender to find true repentance and peace. I am holding both especially today."

She continued in a later thread: "None of the women I've spoken with are rejoicing today. We're grieving the destruction across so much. We're grieving the reality that protecting others from him came with the near-certainty we would wake up to this someday. For ALL our sakes, we desperately wish he had chosen differently. The farthest we can run from what Larry became, is to love. That isn't at odds with justice, but it means we aren't finding entertainment value in destruction either. No one's life is a gif for us to mock, even when we are standing against the evil that person has done. It's not the same as justice. All of us would appreciate it if you'd lay off the memes, gifs and jokes. This isn't a joke to any of us."

The news was broken by the Associated Press, who was given details about the incident from two anonymous sources close to the ongoing investigation. Nassar was reportedly stabbed multiple times in the back and chest.

Responding to an inquiry from Newsweek, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) would not comment specifically on any situation involving Nassar, but did confirm that an inmate was recently assaulted at USP Coleman II.

"For privacy, safety, and security reasons, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) does not discuss the conditions of confinement for any inmate or group of inmates including medical status. However, we can confirm on Sunday, July 9, 2023, at approximately 2:35 pm, an inmate was assaulted at the United States Penitentiary (USP) Coleman II, in Sumterville, Florida. Responding staff immediately initiated life-saving measures," BOP spokesman Benjamin O'Cone wrote. "Staff requested Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and life-saving efforts continued. The inmate was transported by EMS to a local hospital for further treatment and evaluation. The Federal Bureau of Investigation was notified. No staff or other inmates were injured and at no time was the public in danger. An internal investigation is ongoing."

Update 7/10/2023, 1:15 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.