Former NC State Sports Medicine Director Faces 32 Charges in Abuse Indictment

The former director of sports medicine at North Carolina State University (NC State), Robert Murphy Jr., 54, has been indicted on nine felony charges of sexual contact or penetration and 23 misdemeanor charges of sexual battery. Murphy is accused of making sexual contact with male student athletes under the guise of medical treatment.

Murphy was arrested on Wednesday in Ocala, Florida, according to inmate information from the Marion County Sheriff's Office. Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman stated that her office is awaiting a decision on whether Murphy will fight extradition to North Carolina.

Attorneys for Murphy have denied the allegations. Seth Blum, one of Murphy's attorneys, previously stated that his client was falsely accused and that there was "not one scrap of credible evidence he assaulted anyone." Jarod Hammett, another attorney for Murphy, has suggested that lawsuits filed by former athletes are motivated by attorneys seeking large settlements from the university.

These indictments mark the first criminal action stemming from accusations that have surfaced in federal, state, and county civil courts in recent years. A class-action lawsuit filed by more than 30 former athletes against Murphy and multiple school officials was dismissed in June by a North Carolina judge due to procedural issues. Attorneys for the plaintiffs have since appealed that dismissal.

The allegations against Murphy include improperly touching athletes' genitals during massages and intrusive observation while they were collecting urine samples for drug tests. An attorney representing the plaintiffs in the civil complaint, Kerry Sutton, stated that the criminal charges validate her clients' claims. "Our fight for these men and others expected to come forward will not stop until Murphy and NC State stand accountable to these young men and to the people of North Carolina," Sutton wrote in a statement. "Anything less is unthinkable."