Eleven women have come together to file what is the fifth lawsuit against former University of Michigan football coach Matt Weiss, alleging he accessed their personal data and the university failed to protect them.
According to The Detroit News, the lawsuit was filed against Weiss, the University of Michigan, the Board of Regents and database manager Keffer Development Services. It involves 10 former student-athletes at UM, including two gymnasts, seven soccer players and a cheerleader, and one former volleyball player at the University of Maryland and Loyola University Chicago.
The filing brings the total number of women who have filed lawsuits against Weiss and the university to 17.
Weiss, who was a co-offensive coordinator under former head coach Jim Harbaugh, was indicted on March 20 on 24 counts, including 14 counts of unauthorized access to computers and 10 counts of aggravated identity theft. Weiss faces up to five years on each computer charge and two years on each identity theft charge.
Weiss allegedly gained access to a database of student-athletes at more than 100 colleges and universities that was maintained by a third-party company. He is accused of having downloaded personal information and medical data, which he then used to access the student-athletes' social media accounts, where he then downloaded personal digital photographs and videos.
UM director of Public Affairs Kay Jarvis said Wednesday that while prosecutors accused Weiss of improperly accessing the online accounts between 2015 and 2023, he was only employed by the UM from February 2021 to January 2023 .
"Count 23 of the indictment is specific to the University of Michigan and alleges that Weiss accessed protected UM computers without or in excess of authorization from December 21, 2022 to December 23, 2022," Jarvis said in a statement. "Upon learning of potentially concerning activity in its systems, the University promptly placed Mr. Weiss on leave, forwarded this matter to law enforcement authorities and moved forward with Mr. Weiss' termination on January 21, 2023."
A gymnast involve in the latest class action lawsuit said she is looking for institutional change.
"These men don’t act alone, they were able to exploit the system," the gymnast said. "Time and time again it seems the university prioritizes its image over the well-being of student-athletes. We've given so much to represent our school. We deserve to be protected and respected in return," the gymnast said. "The university needs to acknowledge its role in allowing this to happen and take concrete steps to ensure it never happens again."
