Carter Starocci placed on interim suspension by USA Wrestling

Carter Starocci has had his membership with USA Wrestling placed on pause pending the outcome of a disciplinary review. While the action does not itself implicate wrongdoing, it does come after allegations of misconduct were brought to light against the former Penn State wrestling star last month.

Competitors can have their memberships placed on an interim suspension following the filing of a disciplinary complaint with either USA Wrestling or the U.S. Center for SafeSport, which oversees abuse and misconduct in Olympic sports. According to USA Wrestling’s Safe Sport Handbook, interim suspensions are “intended for those situations where it appears appropriate to maintain the safety or well-being of the reporting party, athletes, or other non-athlete participants; or the allegations against the responding party are sufficiently serious that the responding party’s continued participation could be detrimental to the values of USA Wrestling.”

Placement on the list only means that a complaint has been filed and is awaiting resolution.

The news of Starocci’s interim suspension comes two weeks after reports surfaced alleging sexual misconduct and property theft against the five-time national champion. The allegations, mainly stemming from former Nittany Lion teammate Beau Bartlett and anonymous sources, accuse Starocci of sexually assaulting several female students at Penn State. Bartlett and other unnamed teammates also allege Starocci stole property from their lockers and engaged in physical harassment while within the Lorenzo Wrestling Complex.

Bartlett’s allegations of theft were taken to the university police, which closed its investigation without filing charges. Neither Penn State athletics, the NLWC, nor Starocci has commented on the issue publicly since the initial reports were published in June. 

We will provide updates to this story as more information becomes available.

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