The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is still mishandling cases of child sexual abuse in the United States despite enacting reforms following the bungled investigation into disgraced doctor Lawrence Nassar.
That is according to a recently released audit by the Justice Department's inspector general. In that report, the watchdog said the FBI failed to handle 42 cases that required "immediate attention," leading to minors continuing to be victimized.
Additionally, the watchdog said they did not find any evidence that the FBI reported instances of sexual abuse to local, state, or tribal authorities in at least half of the 327 case files it reviewed.
FBI Failed To Appropriately Respond To Child Sexual Abuse Cases
In one particular case noted in the report, the FBI failed to follow up on a tip about child abuse being committed by a registered sex offender. The watchdog also noted that the FBI did not report the abuse allegation to local law enforcement or the probation officer of the abuser. The sex offender was accused of targeting one additional child who was abused for 15 months, the inspector general said.
In another case, the watchdog said the FBI failed to document any steps it took, if any, in an alleged child sexual abuse case involving a two-year-old. That case was open for more than two years before law enforcement officers arrested the abuser. The FBI agent assigned to that case was later found to have also been working 23 other cases.
Investigation Into Dr. Nassar's Sexual Abuse Cases
The watchdog's report was a follow-up on issues that surfaced on the FBI's mishandling of the sexual abuse allegations leveled by athletes against disgraced USA Gymnastic physician Larry Nassar. In that investigation, the watchdog found that senior officials in the FBI failed to respond to allegations against Nassar "with utmost seriousness."
Furthermore, the watchdog said the FBI's field office in Indianapolis made a number of fundamental errors when they responded to the allegations, including failing to notify authorities or taking steps to mitigate the threat Nassar posed.
Nassar was only arrested in late 2016 after IndyStar publicly exposed the accusations, even when allegations of sexual abuse came out in the summer of 2015. Over the one-year period, he abused at least 70 girls and women, including Olympic champions Simone Biles and McKayla Maroney.
The watchdog is now recommending that the FBI develop a method that will monitor the FBI's compliance with mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse cases as well as ensure that all imminent child abuse threats are handled within 24 hours.
