Victims' dad who tries to attack Nassar in court says he's 'no hero'

What would you do when you faces who hurt your child?

A distraught father seething over sexual abuse suffered by three daughters tried to attack former sports doctor Larry Nassar in a Michigan courtroom Friday after a judge rejected his request to confront the "demon" in a locked room, a stunning rush that reflected the anguish felt by parents who trusted him with their children.

Randall Margraves, father of three victims of Larry Nassar , left, lunges at Nassar, bottom right, Friday, Feb. 2, 2018, in Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Mich. The incident came during the third and final sentencing hearing for Nassar on sexual abuse charges. The charges in this case focus on his work with Twistars, an elite Michigan gymnastics club. (Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)

Randall Margraves was blocked by an attorney, tackled by sheriff's deputies and hauled out of court. He later apologized, saying he had lost control. Eaton County Judge Janice Cunningham said there was "no way" she would fine him or send him to jail under her contempt-of-court powers.

"I don't know what it would be like to stand there as a father and know that three of your girls were injured physically and emotionally by somebody sitting in a courtroom. I can't imagine that," the judge said.

Nonetheless, she added, it is "not acceptable that we combat assault with assault."

Eaton County Sheriff's deputies restrain Randall Margraves, father of three victims of Larry Nassar, Friday, Feb. 2, 2018, in Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Mich. The incident came during the third and final sentencing hearing for Nassar on sexual abuse charges. The charges in this case focus on his work with Twistars, an elite Michigan gymnastics club. (Kim Kozlowski/Detroit News via AP)

The incident occurred during the third and final sentencing hearing for Nassar, who has admitted to sexually assaulting girls under the guise of medical treatment. This case focuses on his work at Twistars, an elite gymnastics club southwest of Lansing.

Nassar, 54, already will spend the rest of his life in prison. He was sentenced last week to 40 to 175 years in prison for assaults at Michigan State University and his home and was ordered in December to spend 60 years in a federal prison for child pornography crimes.

Nassar pleaded guilty to molesting nine victims in Eaton and Ingham counties, but the courts have been open to anyone who says she was assaulted during his decades of work at Michigan State, Twistars and USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians. More than 200 accusers so far have spoken or submitted statements in the two counties, and at least 80 percent have agreed to be publicly identified.

Randall Margraves sits in handcuffs as he prepares to stand in front of Judge Janice Cunningham for a contempt of court hearing after he lunged at Larry Nassar during Nassar's sentencing at Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Mich., on Friday, Feb. 2, 2018. Cunningham accepted an apology from Margraves, the father of three victims of Nassar. A lawyer and sheriff’s deputies stopped Margraves before he could reach Nassar, who is being sentenced for sexually assaulting gymnasts. (Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)

Margraves' dramatic move occurred after he listened to two of his daughters speak in court for 10 minutes. Lauren Margraves, a college student, said her parents were "filled with regret" because they took three daughters to see Nassar for sports injuries.

"I see the look in their faces and I know they want to be able to do something but they can't," she told Nassar. "The guilt they have will never go away. All this is because of you."

Her father then stepped up and asked the judge if she would grant him "five minutes in a locked room with this demon." Cunningham declined and also turned down his request for "one minute." That is when Randall Margraves rushed toward Nassar.

There were gasps and tears in the courtroom. Assistant Attorney General Angela Povilaitis turned to the gallery and told families to "use your words," not violence.

Randall Margraves, right, talks to attorney Mick Grewal, as he prepares to stand in front of Judge Janice Cunningham for a contempt of court hearing after he lunged at Larry Nassar during Nassar's sentencing at Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Mich., on Friday, Feb. 2, 2018. Cunningham accepted an apology from Margraves, the father of three victims of Nassar. A lawyer and sheriff’s deputies stopped Margraves before he could reach Nassar, who is being sentenced for sexually assaulting gymnasts. (Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)

"This is letting him have this power over us," she said. "We cannot behave like this."

During a return to court, Margraves told the judge that he just snapped. He said he had not known what exactly his daughters were going to say about their abuse.

"I look over here and Larry Nassar's shaking his head, no, like it didn't happen. ... I'm embarrassed," Margraves said of his conduct. "I'm not here to upstage my daughters. I'm here to help them heal."

About 30 more people spoke in person, by video or had statements read after the incident. The case will end Monday with final remarks from the prosecutor, defense and Nassar, followed by the judge's sentence. Nassar faces a minimum of 25 to 40 years in prison.

At a news conference, Margraves repeated his apology and insisted he's "no hero."

"My daughters are the heroes, and all the victims and the survivors of this terrible atrocity," he said.

Madison Rae Margraves, right, reacts while her sister, Lauren Margraves, gives a statement during Larry Nassar's sentencing at Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Mich., on Friday, Feb. 2, 2018. Randall Margraves, father of Madison and Laurn, lunged at Nassar before court officers restrained him. The incident came during the third and final sentencing hearing for Nassar on sexual abuse charges. The charges in this case focus on his work with Twistars, an elite Michigan gymnastics club. (Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)

Melissa Alexander Vigogne, who traveled from France to speak, said she was surprised that an attack had not been attempted earlier.

"It's not that that's how we should respond. But it's truly understandable — the amount of pain that we've all gone through," Vigogne said outside court.

Sheriff Tom Reich said his officers will investigate what happened in court and send a report to the local prosecutor.

The judge started the day by addressing comments made by a Nassar lawyer who said she had doubts about the large number of women and girls who say they were assaulted by Nassar. Cunningham called Shannon Smith's remarks "unfortunate" and said Nassar did not authorize them.

Smith told Detroit radio station WWJ that it is "really unfortunate" if some people stepped forward only because of all the recent attention. Nassar released a statement saying Smith's comments were a distraction and that his accusers' remarks "have pierced my soul."

Many of Nassar's accusers have blamed Michigan State, USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic Committee for not doing more earlier to stop him. The USOC announced Friday that it hired a law firm to conduct an independent investigation. And the coordinator of the women's national team for USA Gymnastics, Valeri Liukin, said he was stepping down.

Eaton County Sheriff's deputies restrain Randall Margraves, father of three victims of Larry Nassar, Friday, Feb. 2, 2018, in Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Mich. The incident came during the third and final sentencing hearing for Nassar on sexual abuse charges. The charges in this case focus on his work with Twistars, an elite Michigan gymnastics club. (Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)

CORRECTS FIRST NAME FROM JANET TO JANICE CUNNINGHAM - Randall Margraves, father of Lauren and Madison Margraves is detained after trying to attack Larry Nassar Friday, Feb. 2, 2018, in Eaton County Circuit Court during the second day of victim impact statements in Judge Janice Cunningham's courtroom in Charlotte, Mich. The incident came during the third and final sentencing hearing for Nassar on sexual abuse charges. The charges in this case focus on his work with Twistars, an elite Michigan gymnastics club. (Matthew Dae Smith /Lansing State Journal via AP)

Randall Margraves, left, talks to attorney Mick Grewal, as he prepares to stand in front of Judge Janice Cunningham for a contempt of court hearing after he lunged at Larry Nassar during Nassar's sentencing at Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Mich., on Friday, Feb. 2, 2018. Cunningham accepted an apology from Margraves, the father of three victims of Nassar. A lawyer and sheriff’s deputies stopped Margraves before he could reach Nassar, who is being sentenced for sexually assaulting gymnasts. (Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)

Eaton County Sheriff's deputies restrain Randall Margraves, father of three victims of Larry Nassar, Friday, Feb. 2, 2018, in Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Mich. The incident came during the third and final sentencing hearing for Nassar on sexual abuse charges. The charges in this case focus on his work with Twistars, an elite Michigan gymnastics club. (Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — At a Ukrainian power plant repeatedly hit by Russian aerial attacks, equipment department chief Oleh has a one-word answer when asked what Ukraine’s battered energy industry needs most: “Patriot.”

Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine’s energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public’s morale. Staff worry they will lose the race to prepare for winter unless allies come up with air-defense systems like the U.S.-made Patriots to stop Russian attacks inflicting more destruction on already damaged plants.

“Rockets hit fast. Fixing takes long,” Oleh said in limited but forceful English.

The U.S. has sent Ukraine some Patriot missile systems, and said last week it would give more after entreaties from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The Associated Press on Thursday visited a plant owned by DTEK, the country’s biggest private energy supplier, days after a cruise-missile attack left parts of it a mess of smashed glass, shattered bricks and twisted metal. The coal-fired plant is one of four DTEK power stations struck on the same day last week.

The AP was given access on the condition that the location of the facility, technical details of the damage and workers’ full names are not published due to security concerns.

During the visit, State Emergency Service workers in hard hats and harnesses clambered atop the twisted roof of a vast building, assessing the damage and occasionally dislodging chunks of debris with a thunderous clang.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told Foreign Policy magazine that half of the country’s energy system has been damaged by Russian attacks.

DTEK says it has lost 80% of its electricity-generating capacity in almost 180 aerial attacks since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. It estimates that repairing all the damaged plants would take between six months and two years — even if there are no more strikes.

Shift supervisor Ruslan was on duty in the operations room when the air alarm sounded. He sent his crew to a basement shelter but remained at his post when the blast struck only meters (yards) away.

He rushed out to darkness, dust and fire. He said he wasn’t scared because “I knew what I needed to do” – make sure his team was OK and then try to help put out the flames.

Russia pummeled Ukraine’s energy infrastructure to devastating effect during the “blackout winter” of 2022-23. In March it launched a new wave of attacks, one of which completely destroyed the Trypilska power plant near Kyiv, one of the country’s biggest.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has framed the attacks as retaliation for Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries.

Oleh said the Russians are “learning all the time” and adapting their tactics. Initially they targeted transformers that distribute power; now they aim for the power-generating equipment itself, with increasing accuracy. The Russians also are sending growing numbers of missiles and exploding drones to exhaust Ukraine’s air defenses, and striking the same targets repeatedly.

DTEK executive director Dmytro Sakharuk said in March that out of 10 units the company had repaired after earlier strikes, two-thirds had been hit again.

More Russian missiles have been getting through in recent months as Ukraine awaited new supplies from allies, including a $61 billion package from the U.S. that was held up for months by wrangling in Congress. It was finally approved in April, but it could be weeks or months before all the new weapons and ammunition arrives.

Ukraine’s energy firms have all but exhausted their finances, equipment and spare parts fixing the damage Russia has already wrought. The country’s power plants urgently need specialist equipment that Ukraine can no longer make at sufficient speed and scale.

Some 51 DTEK employees have been wounded in attacks since 2022, and three have been killed. Staff say they keep working despite the danger because they know how crucial their work is.

Machine operator Dmytro, who was on shift during the recent attack and took shelter in the basement, said that when he emerged, “my soul was bleeding when I saw the scale of the destruction.”

He thought of the many people who had poured heart and soul into building the mammoth power plant.

“This was destroyed in a few seconds, in an instant,” he said.

Dmytro, who worked at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant before it was seized by Russia, said he would continue to show up for work every day, “as long as I’m able.”

“It’s our duty towards the country,” he said

Workers stand among debris in a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Workers remove debris from the roof of damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

A state emergency service member stands next to debris in a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Workers walk among debris in a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

A worker walks along an internal corridor in a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Workers stand next to debris in a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Debris of a Russian missile are gathered next to a damaged building in a DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Workers remove debris from the roof of a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

A worker stands next to debris in a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Workers walk among debris in a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Workers remove debris from the roof of a damaged DTEK thermal power plant after a Russian attack in Ukraine, Thursday, May 2, 2024. Ukrainian energy workers are struggling to repair the damage from intensifying airstrikes aimed at pulverizing Ukraine's energy grid, hobbling the economy and sapping the public's morale. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)