George Tyndall, former USC gynecologist accused of sexual misconduct, has died

By Jack Hannah, CNN

(CNN) — Former University of Southern California gynecologist George Tyndall, who was accused of sexually abusing his patients, was found dead Wednesday in his home, according to his attorney.

A friend of Tyndall’s went to check on him after he wasn’t picking up his phone, Tyndall’s attorney, Leonard Levine, told CNN on Thursday. Levine said the friend found Tyndall “unresponsive” and “cold to the touch.”

CNN has reached out to the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office for more information.

Tyndall was accused of inappropriately touching 16 women during his time as a gynecologist and was criminally charged with 29 counts of sex crimes in 2019, to which he pleaded not guilty.

Tyndall was a gynecologist at the school for almost 30 years and was fired in 2017, CNN previously reported.

Levine calls Tyndall’s death an “unfortunate” loss for not only his family but also for all involved in the impending trial. Levine said Tyndall “was very much looking forward” to having his day in court.

In 2021, USC paid a record-setting $1.1 billion to settle scores of lawsuits over the sexual abuse allegations against Tyndall.

The settlement involved civil claims from 710 former patients of Tyndall. The victims’ attorneys said it was “the largest sexual abuse settlement against any university and the largest personal injury settlement against any university in history.”

The large sum came from an $852 million settlement announced by the university in March 2021, a previous federal class-action settlement totaling $215 million as well as “other settlements,” according to USC.

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CNN’s Cheri Mossburg, Holly Yan and Claire Colbert contributed to this report.