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PSU Independent Investigation Report Released (Update)
From 1998 – 2011, former FBI Director Louis Freeh says the “tone at the top” of Penn State was “completely wrong.” Freeh was tapped by the Penn State Board of Trustees, last November, to conduct an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal. More than seven months later, Freeh has dropped a 267-page bombshell in the form of his findings. The report includes 119-recommendations to help the school create a more open and compliant culture.
Freeh says the most saddening and sobering finding is the, “total disregard for the safety and welfare of Sandusky’s child victims by the most senior leaders at Penn State.” Referring to ex-President Graham Spanier, former administrator Gary Schultz, Athletic Director Tim Curley and the late Joe Paterno – Freeh says the most powerful men at Penn State failed to take any steps for 14-years to protect the children who Sandusky victimized.
The internal investigation uncovered a proposed action plan following Mike McQueary’s 2001 report of seeing Sandusky in the locker room showers with a young boy. That action plan initially included reporting the allegations to authorities. “After Mr. Curley consulted with Mr. Paterno, however, they changed the plan and decided not to make the report to the authorities,” Freeh explained at today’s news conference.
Freeh also says the four men cited in his report – Spanier, Schultz, Curley and Paterno – knew about a 1998 criminal investigation into alleged sexual misconduct by Sandusky, but did nothing. He calls it a callous and shocking disregard for child victims.
Schultz and Curley are currently awaiting trial on perjury charges; Spanier has not been charged; Paterno passed away in January.
Today’s report marks the beginning of a process for Penn State, according to Freeh. He says it’s critical that the University never forgets these failures and commits to an open, compliant and sensitive environment. In a q&a with the media in Philadelphia, today, Freeh did say that parents should feel comfortable sending their children to Penn State. He believes the institution has made considerable strides since November 2011.
The Penn State Board of Trustees is holding its regular meeting in Scranton later today. Penn State President Rodney Erickson is expected to offer remarks at that time.
Jerry Sandusky awaits his sentencing hearing from the Centre County Correctional Facility.
Lawmaker Wants to be Sure Sandusky Doesn’t Keep State Pension
There has been no clear answer as to whether Jerry Sandusky can keep his state pension once he’s sentenced on child sex abuse charges. A state representative wants to change that. Sandusky was convicted last month on 45 counts and will be sentenced later this summer.
York County Democrat Eugene DePasquale is introducing legislation to ensure that the former Penn State assistant football coach and any other public official or employee sentenced for certain crimes against children would lose their state pensions. . It would disqualify public officials and employees convicted of certain crimes against children that require registration as a sex offender. The measure would be retroactive to June 1st.
Representative DePasquale says the current forfeiture law does include language regarding public school teachers and certain crimes against children, but does not spell out such offenses for other public officials or employees.
Child Abuse Bills Await Governor’s Signature
Under current law teachers are “mandated reporters” of child abuse, but state Senator Pat Vance (R-Cumberland) says only 15% of school districts provide any kind of training to help them recognize it. Vance is the prime sponsor legislation that will require school employees, who have direct contact with children, to receive at least three hours of training in child abuse identification every five years.
“It’s always been important but since the recent publicity coming out of State College it has become even more vitally important,” says Vance, who has introduced this bill before.
The reference to “recent publicity,” of course, refers to the Jerry Sandusky trial. Vance’s bill received unanimous House votes on June 18th (day five of testimony in the child sex abuse trial). The Senate unanimously concurred in House amendments on June 25th (the first session day following Sandusky’s conviction on 48 charges of child sex abuse).
Jerry Sandusky is currently locked up in the Centre County Correctional Facility. He will appeal the conviction.
Also awaiting the governor’s signature is legislation that will allow expert witnesses to put sexual assault victims’ behavior into context at trial. “We have seen how the defendant in the sexual assault case being heard in Centre County was permitted to provide an expert witness to explain the defendant’s behavior but Pennsylvania case law prohibits the prosecution from presenting expert witnesses,” Rep. Cherelle Parker (D-Philadelphia) explained in a June 21st statement. That was also the date the Sandusky jury began its deliberations.
The changes to Pennsylvania’s child abuse statutes may not stop with these two bills. A Task Force on Child Protection was tapped in the wake of the Sandusky grand jury to review the state’s child abuse policies and procedures. The task force’s final report is due by November 30th.
Jerry Sandusky Guilty: Now What?
The conviction of Jerry Sandusky on 45 of 48 counts of child sex abuse sent the former Penn State assistant football coach to jail while he awaits sentencing, which is expected in September. Meanwhile, the defense is preparing an appeal of the conviction.
Lead defense attorney Joe Amendola says there are several grounds for an appeal, but he did not seem to be surprised by the guilty verdicts handed down Friday night. To the jeers of a crowd gathered outside the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte, Amendola did indicate that he believed his client is innocent.
Sandusky will be housed in the Centre County lockup until he is sentenced in about three months. Given the number of counts and the seriousness of the crimes, it is expected that the sentence will put Sandusky away for the rest of his life.
Jury Selection Completed in Sandusky Case
A jury is in place for the child sex abuse trial of Jerry Sandusky, with the case set to begin next week. It took a little less than two days to pick a panel to hear the charges against the former Penn State assistant football coach.
The panel of 12 jurors and 4 alternates was picked from a group of about 80 questioned by the attorneys and Judge John Cleland. The main jury consists of 7 women and 5 men. Many of the jurors have ties to Penn State University.
Opening statements by prosecutors and Sandusky’s defense lawyers are scheduled to begin on Monday morning. The judge turned down another request for a continuance during jury selection.
Could You Be Impartial?
The Herculean task of finding 12 men and/or women to sit on Jerry Sandusky’s jury is underway at the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte. The former Penn State football Defensive Coordinator is charged with more than 50 counts connected to the alleged molestations of at least 10 young boys over a 15 year period.
The trial is playing out in Centre County, home to Penn State University and The Second Mile, the charity founded by Sandusky more than 30 years ago. Prosecutors allege that Sandusky used the charity to prey on vulnerable at-risk boys.
Questions about whether or not an impartial jury can be found in Centre County have been floating around since the charges were revealed last November. The lawyers on both sides will face unique challenges in this case, as they try to weed through the list of potential jurors for a trial that is expected to take several weeks.
Robert Power, a law professor at Widener University in Dauphin County says he believes the court can find 12 impartial jurors, but that the process could take some time, certainly longer than in a typical case where voir dire can take as little as an hour or two. Power says even potential jurors with no ties to the university or any other aspects of the case may have formed opinions about it based on more than 6 months of intense media coverage.
The court has set aside this entire week for selection of a jury and the alternates. Testimony is not expected to begin before Monday, June 11th.
Voices for Victims Delivers Letters, Still Collecting Messages
You can link to the Voices for Victims Facebook page below.
A student-led campaign is delivering letters of support to the alleged victims in the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal. “Many of us have not forgotten about them, many of us do care,” says Voices for Victims project leader Matt Bodenschatz, who believes the alleged victims should not be lost in the scandal just because they are anonymous.
“If you think about it, in today’s world we rarely send letters to our friends, let alone to take that action out of empathy and support and thanks from thousands of miles away,” Bodenschatz explains. The letters the campaign’s already received have come from as nearby as the Penn State campus to as far away as Croatia.
Bodenschatz has already delivered scores of letters to the attorneys for the alleged victims, but stresses their work is not done. As a victim of child sex abuse himself, Bodenschatz tells Radio PA that a heartfelt message can have a profound impact. “When I held it in my hands… tears were brought to my own eyes.”
Voices for Victims has taken down the drop boxes they had placed around the campus and town, but are still accepting correspondence electronically and through the US Mail. With the trial looming, they believe the alleged victims will be in need of another showing of support.
Bodenschatz is often asked for advice on what to write. “Really what people are often looking for is reassurance that what is coming from your heart is so very, very likely the right thing.”
Sandusky’s trial on 52-counts of alleged abuse is currently scheduled to begin next month. He has denied any criminal wrongdoing.