LOS ANGELES, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Ninety-three more female patients have come forward to file suits over alleged inappropriate behavior by Dr. George Tyndall, a former gynecologist at the University of Southern California (USC), said attorneys representing those women on Thursday in western U.S. city of Los Angeles.
Attorneys told reporters at a downtown Los Angeles news conference that the 93 former USC students are represented in two new lawsuits. The new claims brought the number of women suing the university to more than 400.
"Six months since the Los Angeles Times broke the story, three months since we filed our first cases and 60 days since class commenced this semester, nothing has been done," said attorney Andy Rubenstein, adding that people are looking for institutional change which can protect them, and thus take courage to step in and speak out as well as to sit down and listen.
"We are calling on USC's board of trustees to listen to these women and be part of the collaborative processes," he noted.
The complaints against Tyndall include improperly photographing students' genitals, touching women inappropriately during pelvic exams and making sexually suggestive remarks about their bodies. Tyndall had worked as the only full-time gynecologist at the USC student clinic for nearly 30 years.
Another attorney John Manly, one of the lead attorneys who represented the victims of former Olympic and Michigan State University Dr. Larry Nassar, called on California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to "commence a serious investigation of USC."
He slammed USC, his alma mater, "miserably failed these women," although it is the recipient of hundreds of millions of dollars of state of California aid.
In response to the latest lawsuits, USC officials said in a statement to CNN that they are aware of the lawsuits.
"We will be seeking a prompt and fair resolution that is respectful of our former students. We are committed to providing the women of USC with the best, most thorough and respectful health care services of any university," said the statement.
According to Deng Law Center in Los Angeles, three former Chinese students have joined the lawsuits against the university.
The Los Angeles Times reported that some colleagues of Tyndall feared the gynecologist was targeting the university's growing population of Chinese students in recent years. Those Chinese students often had a limited knowledge of the English language and American medical norms.
The Consulate General of China in Los Angeles expressed serious concern over the scandal on May 16, requesting the university to take serious steps to investigate the issue and to protect Chinese students from such illegal acts.
The USC has established a hotline for complaints about Tyndall's sexual harassment and misconduct and said it would take measures for significant and sustainable change. Wanda M. Austin was appointed interim USC president in August, replacing C. L. Max Nikias, who agreed to step down amid the scandal. The USC Student Health organization promised to provide more medical resources in Chinese for international students from China.
The USC is a leading private research university located in Los Angeles in the U.S. state of California. A total of 45,500 students were enrolled in the 2017-18 academic year, including around 5,400 from the Chinese mainland, accounting for about half of the USC's international enrollment.
