A shocking lawsuit has put Sen. Ron Wyden’s (D-OR) family at the center of scandal after disturbing allegations emerged against the children of the Oregon senator and his wife, Strand Bookstore owner Nancy Bass Wyden.
According to the lawsuit filed by the widower of Brandon O’Brien, the 35-year-old assistant was relentlessly harassed by Wyden’s children while working for the family from 2022 to 2024. Court filings allege that Wyden’s then-10-year-old daughter exposed herself and made “sexually explicit” remarks, while his teenage son hurled homophobic slurs, including “[expletive]” and “zest kitten.” The boy allegedly even claimed his football team “would rape him.”
The suit describes violent behavior as well, including an incident where Bass Wyden allegedly maced her son to restrain him but accidentally hit O’Brien instead. Abuse reportedly took place in multiple locations—including Disney parks—sometimes in front of witnesses.
Despite O’Brien’s pleas, Nancy Bass Wyden allegedly did little to intervene. Instead, after he quit in September 2024, she accused him of stealing $650,000, hired a private investigator, and spread damaging rumors. O’Brien died by suicide in May 2025.
Attorneys for O’Brien’s widower condemned the treatment: “The allegations against the senator’s wife are shocking, disturbing, and cruel — no person should ever be subject to this level of harassment, much less in the workplace.”
Sen. Wyden has yet to answer for the lawsuit, but the Ron Wyden family scandal raises serious questions about the culture inside the home of one of the Senate’s most powerful Democrats.
