Scott Shaw, Former San Jose State Official, Pleads Guilty to Abuse of Athletes
Aug 16, 2023
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Former San Jose State head athletic trainer and sports medicine director Scott Shaw admitted in court to abusing female student-athletes during his tenure at the university from 2006 to 2020.
According to Kenny Jacoby of USA Today, Shaw pleaded guilty on Tuesday to "two misdemeanor counts of abusing his authority by groping female athletes under the guise of treating their injuries." He had served as associate director for two years before being promoted to head trainer and sports medicine director in 2008.
The 56-year-old faces up to two years in prison, one for each count, and his sentencing hearing has been set for Nov. 14 by Judge Amy Labson Freeman. He will also be required to pay restitution to his victims as well as other potential fines.
"I'm feeling a lot of relief," a former San Jose State swimmer, who was among the first to report Shaw's touching to school officials in 2009, said on Tuesday. "I never thought that I would hear him say he's guilty. I'm really ready to close this chapter and hopefully move forward."
Jacoby noted that 17 members of the San Jose State women's swimming and diving team had reported Shaw's inappropriate touching to school officials in 2009, but he was cleared of any wrongdoing by the university's human resources department and campus police, thereby allowing his alleged abuse to continue for another decade.
The university reopened its investigation in December 2019 but allowed him to continue working, and one woman said he abused her in early 2020. Criminal charges were filed against Shaw in March 2022 after more victims were found through the university's outreach to the nearly 1,000 female athletes who played at the school while he was employed.
Shaw was originally the subject of a nine-day trial that ran from late July to early August and resulted in a mistrial after two jurors prevented his conviction. Jacoby noted that one juror held out "on all six counts against Shaw and the other on five of the six." Instead of a retrial, prosecutors offered Shaw a deal where he'd plead guilty to two counts in exchange for the other four.
Per Jacoby, "Shaw acknowledged Tuesday that he had no legitimate medical purpose for touching those athletes' sensitive areas and that he did so knowing that he was depriving them of their right to bodily integrity."
