The man who Dennis Hastert was paying $3.5 million in hush money to has sued the former speaker of the house for the rest of it.
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The complaint, which was filed Monday in Illinois’ Kendall County Circuit Court and identifies the man as “James Doe”, says that Hastert was a “trusted friend of Doe’s family”.
“For many years to follow [the abuse], Plaintiff suffered severe panic attacks which led to periods of unemployment, career changes, bouts of depression, hospitalization, and long-term psychiatric treatment”, the complaint reads.
Federal prosecutors say Hastert was able to actually pay the man a total of $1.7 million – a little less than half the agreed amount – between 2010 and 2014 in regular payments that only stopped when the government started investigating him. The suit seeks the additional $1.8 million, plus interest – casting the verbal arrangement between the two men as a “settlement agreement” that Hastert breached.
Hastert is not facing criminal charges relating to the sexual abuse allegations, but he did face charges of bank fraud, to which he pled guilty previous year. “While at the camp, (Hastert) violated the special trust (Doe) placed in (Hastert) by sexually molesting and abusing (Doe) in a motel room”, the lawsuit said.
In March of 2015, Individual A told federal agents that he was the case’s victim.
But it wasn’t until 2008, when the man said he learned he wasn’t Hastert’s only victim, that he confronted the powerful former IL congressman, who as speaker of the House was third in line to the presidency.
Attorneys representing Hastert said they had no comment on the lawsuit.
Reinboldt’s sister claims her brother was a victim of Hastert’s abuse, and prosecutors agreed, writing: “Reinboldt was a victim and defendant was his abuser”. Authorities found that he was withdrawing $50,000 increments, then $9,000 increments to pay a man known as “Individual A” as part of an agreement not to disclose the abuse.
Prosecutors have alleged in court filings that after Hastert was initially questioned about his unusual cash withdrawals, he claimed to Federal Bureau of Investigation agents that he was being extorted and that the man now suing him was making false claims of sexual abuse.
Hastert, it said, “removed Individual D’s trousers and told Individual D to turn over on his back”. The Individual had had an agreement with Hastert where he was expected to be paid $3.5 million in cash to settle the dispute.
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Prosecutors have said they believe Hastert should face as little as no prison time or as much as six months in prison.
