By Michaela Towfighi — Boston Globe

Oct. 18, 2026

For five years, biologist David Sabatini has replayed his downfall from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the back of his mind, like a movie on repeat.

More often than not, he tried to hit pause, avoiding headlines about his ousting from the Whitehead Institute in Cambridge, after a much younger colleague, Kristin Knouse, accused him of inappropriate sexual conduct and an internal investigation found he violated a strict workplace relationship policy.

But the latest development — when a Suffolk County jury last week unanimously awarded him $6 million in damages in his civil lawsuit against Knouse, while dismissing her claims of retaliation and harassment against him — are scenes he describes in vivid detail.

1. Michaela Towfighi — Boston Globe