Butler athletes say trainer's sexual assaults were 'frequent,' over a 'long period of time'

Three Butler University women's soccer players say they were sexually abused by the school's former athletic trainer Michael Howell, according to new federal lawsuits that allege the trainer shared pornographic video clips and, in one instance, attempted to silence a victim by threatening to reveal potentially damaging information.

The three separate complaints filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis say Howell used hotel room massage sessions and special training outside his official duties "to build trust, isolate, and weaponized the young women’s desires to be the best athletes they could be."

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The lawsuits name the university and Ralph Reiff, Butler's senior associate athletic director for Student-Athlete Health, Performance and Well-Being, as co-defendants. They are accused of failing to have appropriate conduct policies for athletic trainers and not properly supervising Howell. The lawsuits allege Howell's close relationship with co-head coach Robert Alman made it difficult for players to come forward.

"Howell’s sexual assaults were so frequent, over such a long period of time, and to so many women that the athletes coined the term 'the breeze' to describe it when Howell would lift their bras, spandex, and underwear and air would rush over their breasts and vaginal areas," the women allege.

3 Butler athletes seek compensatory and punitive damages

The federal complaints were filed by Fierberg National Law Group on behalf of the individual players, identified in their respective complaints as “Jane Doe 1-3.” The women are seeking compensatory damages for psychological pain and suffering, medical bills and counseling and other cost for care as well as punitive damages.

In an email statement to IndyStar, a Butler spokesperson said: "The health, safety, and well-being of our campus community is always our top priority. In late September 2021, student-athletes on the women’s soccer team reported misconduct by Michael Howell, an assistant athletic trainer. Upon being informed of the allegations, the University promptly notified law enforcement, removed Howell from campus and suspended him from his job duties, pending further investigation."

The statement said Butler conducted a "thorough investigation and hearing" and found Howell was responsible for violating university policies. He was released from his job last summer.

"Butler looks forward to the opportunity to show the high integrity and responsiveness of the coaches and senior personnel," the statement said. "Because the complaints do not name the plaintiffs and they have not waived federal student privacy protections, Butler is limited from further comment outside of the legal process."

Reiff did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment and IndyStar was unable to contact Howell.

Attorney: At least 6 women have come forward

Monice H. Beck, an attorney for the law firm representing the women, said they know of at least six women who have come forward about abuse allegedly perpetuated by Howell on and off the university’s campus — in training rooms, private hotels, buses transporting the team and various other locations. It’s possible, Beck said, that there are more victims.

"One of the reasons our clients filed this lawsuit is so that other survivors will know they are not alone," Beck said. "In this day and age, knowing the abuse Larry Nassar perpetrated under the guise of providing medical treatment, it is inexcusable that this has happened on Butler's watch."

Joining Beck and Doug Fierberg as counsel on the lawsuits is Rachael Denhollander, who was the first woman to publicly come forward to IndyStar with allegations against Larry Nassar, the disgraced former USA Gymnastics and Michigan State physician. Nassar sexually abused hundreds of young women under the false pretense of legitimate medical treatment and is serving a 40- to 175-year sentence in federal prison.

In addition to grooming, stalking and sexual abuse, the lawsuits say Howell created a bubble around certain athletes, claimed to control whether they participated in games and tried to poison relationships between athletes.

Complaints say trainer used his authority to create 'intimidating' environment for athletes

Howell worked at Butler from 2012 until he was put on leave in October 2021. He also worked with the baseball, men’s and women’s golf, men’s tennis and cheerleading teams while with Butler.

The complaints state Howell misused his position and authority to maintain an environment that female soccer players, including Jane Doe 3, found "intimidating, stressful, and manipulating." The complaints state Butler women’s soccer co-head coaches Alman and Tari St. John knew of the culture within the training room.

Reiff, according to the complaints, "did not do anything reasonably required to investigate the circumstances, train the coaches, keep Howell or the athletes under watch, promulgate or request the implementation of safety policies, or otherwise protect multiple women as they were repeatedly abused by Howell in various locations on and off campus over extended periods of time."

Jane Doe 3 joined the Butler soccer team in the fall of 2019. Prior to that, her experience with trainers was limited to having her ankles taped before games and doing rehabilitation on her ankle. She had never had a massage.

According to the complaints, Howell provided Jane Doe 3 and three other students with additional workouts two to three times a week that were outside his duties as an athlete trainer. The complaints state Howell sexually assaulted three out of the four women he brought to the workouts, according to Jane Doe 3.

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According to the complaints, Howell told Jane Doe 3 during her freshman year he had a picture of her and her roommate with an alcoholic beverage and might leverage the information against her if she spoke out against him.

Jane Doe 3 says Howell showed her sexual movie clips and secretly videotaped athletes, including while they slept on the team bus to away games, and he required athletes to take ice baths in his hotel room and would give massages from 30 minutes to multiple hours. Many of the sexual assaults allegedly happened in Howell's hotel rooms.

The complaints say St. John and Alman knew Howell was giving treatment in his private hotel room instead of performing treatment in the conference room, and the required third person was not present during those sessions. Howell did not record any entries for his treatments to Jane Doe 3, despite written reports of injuries and treatment being required.

The complaints say Jane Doe 3 came in for treatment for lower back pain Sept. 11, 2021. She says Howell started a full body massage, focusing on her glutes, hamstrings and calves, massaging cocoa butter up and down her legs.

According to the complaint filed by Jane Doe 2, “It was not until fall of 2021, when Ms. Doe and several other teammates shared the concerns and experiences with Howell, that (Jane Doe 2) recognized Howell’s conduct as sexually inappropriate and abusive.”

On Sept. 28, 2021, Jane Doe 2 reported the misconduct and abuse to coach St. John, who submitted an incident report. A day later, Reiff informed Howell a concern had been raised and Howell wouldn’t be traveling with the team to an away game the next day.

On Oct. 1, 2021, Reiff instructed Howell to report to work on campus, but told him not to interact with women’s soccer players. Five days later Howell was placed on administrative leave and Butler’s Title IX coordinator filed a formal Title IX complaint.

Between Sept. 28-Oct. 6, 2021, Howell "made multiple attempts to interact with players in a matter that frightened them,” according to the complaints.

The complaints also allege "Butler did not instruct Howell to preserve the contents of the phone for the Title IX investigation. As a result, it is unknown if pictures were taken of Ms. Doe and are out there with the possibility of circulation or for personal use by Howell."

Butler launched 5-month investigation into Title IX complaint

Butler retained attorneys from the law firm of Church Church Hittle and Antrim to investigate the Title IX complaint against Howell. The investigation lasted approximately five months.

During the course of the investigation and hearings, the complaints say Reiff and other employees admitted that: "Butler had no written policies or procedures regarding proper athletic trainer conduct, setting boundaries with athletes, or working with athletes of the opposite sex. An athletic trainer’s active treatment for a student-athlete typically lasts 15-30 minutes, an athletic massage typically lasts only 10 minutes, and there is no appropriate reason for an athletic treatment or massage to last multiple hours."

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Former Butler athletic trainer accused of abusing 3 female athletes