Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky was found guilty Friday on 45 of 48 counts related to sexual abuse of boys over a 15-year period.
Jurors delivered the verdict around 10 p.m. after deliberating for about 21 hours. There were convictions related to all 10 sexual abuse victims, with the three not-guilty verdicts applying to three different individuals.
Sandusky stood slightly hunched, looking down with his hand in his pocket but showing no visible emotion as the guilty verdicts were read out in court. His wife, Dottie, blinked back tears.
As somebody who has worked most of my life with kids this whole thing just sickens me.
I feel so badly for those kids, and I also feel badly for the parents who trusted Sandusky with their children. Parents should not have to hide their children inside their houses out of fear they will be abused by the very grownups they are supposed to be able to trust.
But I have to say fuck everybody who did not listen to the kids when they tried to tell them what was happening, and fuck anybody who covered for this monster, or turned a blind eye and allowed the abuse to go on for decades.
Those kids needed help, and there was NO one to help them. And that is simply inexcusable.
While I believe Sandusky is guilty as hell, I also believe that he was probably abused as a child also, thus the disconnect/inability to understand what was wrong with his actions.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that he did not need to repeat what he experienced.
I have always blessed my father that he did not repeat the beatings he took constantly as the oldest child in his family. He chose not to beat any of us and after hearing the horrific stories about his upbringing, I know that people do not need to mirror their own life.
I thank my father; I hope Sandusky comes to an understanding before he dies. It won't be long for him or he will be in solitary confinement/protective custody until he dies. Sad ending to a sad life.
I hope his victims can begin to heal now that they recognize that others do not approve of what happened to them. They did not deserve this; most of them had already been in hell. May they each find some peace.
Mark my words: This will be the undoing of Penn State as an institute of higher learning.
ReplyDeleteWhile I believe Sandusky is guilty as hell, I also believe that he was probably abused as a child also, thus the disconnect/inability to understand what was wrong with his actions.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that he did not need to repeat what he experienced.
I have always blessed my father that he did not repeat the beatings he took constantly as the oldest child in his family. He chose not to beat any of us and after hearing the horrific stories about his upbringing, I know that people do not need to mirror their own life.
I thank my father; I hope Sandusky comes to an understanding before he dies. It won't be long for him or he will be in solitary confinement/protective custody until he dies. Sad ending to a sad life.
I hope his victims can begin to heal now that they recognize that others do not approve of what happened to them. They did not deserve this; most of them had already been in hell. May they each find some peace.
Thanks for your comment, the cycle can be broken and people can be good parents despite their upbringing. Too often this is overlooked or dismissed out of hand, but I've seen it happen.
DeleteThe Ed Show reported he'll be put in general population, faces up to 60 years, and may face more charges, at least three have come forward, one his own adopted son.
Jerry Sandusky's son says his dad abused him
ReplyDeletehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/national/sanduskys-son-says-his-father-abused-him/2012/06/21/gJQAS7NdtV_video.html
The adopted son of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky said he was abused by his father and was prepared to testify on behalf of the prosecution at his father's trial, according to a statement released Thursday by the son's attorneys.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-jerry-sandusky-son-20120621,0,501331.story
80-Year-Old Child Molester Told Young Boys He Needed Their Semen To Live
ReplyDeletehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/22/charles-lee-bergeron-molested-boys_n_1618842.html?ref=topbar
'I Know How To Interact With Kids': Clown Arrested On Child Porn Charges
ReplyDeletehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/21/thomas-harold-morgan-sondance-clown-child-porn_n_1617144.html?ref=topbar
From what I understand, these boys did not have strong parental involvement. They were being 'helped' by his charity, and they were all low income, disadvantaged kids. But there is no excuse for teh adults who should have been there to listen and act when some of the boys came forward, and no excuse for the rest of the coaches at Penn State who knew what was happening and kept passing the buck.
ReplyDelete"well, I told Coach Paterno." Not good enough, guys...what if had been you or your son?
EXACTLY. I don't think McQueary and Paterno were guilty of doing the wrong thing, I think they were guilty of doing next to nothing. You don't just pass off the reports to your supervisors; you call the police AND your supervisors, you follow up, you do whatever you have to in order to ensure that children are being protected and not exploited. That HAS to come first.
DeleteThey obviously had enough evidence to revoke Sandusky's locker room privileges. Why anyone thought that was enough baffles me.
It's sad to me, as a Penn State alum, that Paterno's great reputation and legacy had to be sullied this way at the end of his life. But I find his passivity in this situation incomprehensible.
Sandusky just makes me ill.
That so many people knew about this for so long...I still can't get over that. No one wanted to rock the boat, risk losing their cushy jobs, risk losing the prestige and the money that came with being involved in college football. Sickening. What a black mark on humanity.
ReplyDeleteYou're so right. I wonder how many kids would have been spared if ONE person did the right thing early on. And for what? Prestige and sports.
DeleteMuch like Jeffery Dalmer, folks in the prison system tend not to like child molesters or odd mass murderers, regardless of race or gang affiliation...IF this trash goes into a 'normal' prison instead of like SuperMax, he'll be dead in two years....
ReplyDeleteAmen! Everything you said I agree with! Hope he goes to prison and gets treated the way he did those boys. He's ruined so many lives.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great fall from grace. The road from Penn State to the State Pen is going to be a bumpy one for the convicted child molester!
ReplyDeleteWell said, Gryph!
ReplyDeleteSandusky's abuse of young boys who trusted and looked up to him is beyond sickening. I hope those convictions bring some closure for these brave young men and others who did not come forward. Sandusky is a monster.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone had any doubt that perhaps he was innocent, three things the jurors did not know locked it up totally: his adopted son Matt claiming he too had been abused; the virtual confession in the part of the secon interview video that was not shown widely; the distancing of S's attorney from S while the jury deliberated (Ammendola violating the judge's direction to stay quiet).
ReplyDeleteNow the question posed during the early stages of this emerging into the MSM: the VIP child prostitution ring that one of the early informants (not a victim IIRC) said he had more info on.
But I have to say fuck everybody who did not listen to the kids when they tried to tell them what was happening, and fuck anybody who covered for this monster, or turned a blind eye and allowed the abuse to go on for decades.
ReplyDeleteAgree! We have Church and Monastery that are still making local and national news about similar. I deplore the enablers of any stripe. I can't believe Dottie Sandusky.
Dottie Sandusky was just trying to protect her meal ticket. I'm sure she got expensive trinkets and baubles so she can keep her mouth shut and turn a blind eye to what was going on in her own home!
DeleteAnon 7:38 ~
DeleteThe kids did not try to tell anyone. Instead, some were seen as miscreants - but no one wondered WHY they were 'acting out'.
The truth had to be drug out of them, when the time came.
Those kids had no idea why they were so angry deep down inside their guts. Jerry made sure it all seemed surreal to those children.
I goddamn guarantee there are many of Jerry's victims who will never come forward.
Hammer and a Feather, I don't think that's entirely accurate. Sandusky was investigated around 1998, when the mother of one of the boys (I believe) filed a complaint. IIRC, there was another complaint later that was also investigated. Both times, the police decided there was no truth to the allegations. So at least some of the boys did try to tell, and no one in authority believed them. That doesn't encourage others to come forward either.
DeleteAnon 10:53 ~
Delete"...when the MOTHER of one of the boys (I believe) filed a complaint."
My point, exactly, that the CHILDREN did not come forward on their own.
Anon 10:53 ~ i feel like i replied without taking the time to explain myself, and do apologize.
DeleteThe mother who called the cops in 1998 did so because her son's hair was wet when he returned from an outing with Sandusky.
Upon further interrogation of her son, she discovered that her son's hair was wet because he had showered with Sandusky. Alarmed, she called the cops...
... and so on...
What i cannot overlook is the fact that ~ if not for her knowing her son's hair was wet in order to trigger her astute sixth sense ~ she was not prompted into action by anything her son 'said'.
the person I despise more than Sandusky is the assistant (or was he a graduate student?) who saw Sandusky raping a kid and just walked away. He said he didn't know what to do? You're an adult; you protect the kid. You could have stopped that particular case of abuse right then and there, but you didn't. Hope what you didn't do haunts your dreams every night of your life.
ReplyDeleteWell said!
DeleteI was angry at him too. I mean he walked in on a child being raped, and he did nothing.
DeleteThis creep was more worried about protecting his job than the kid.
JoePa also knew what was going on, but he just swept it under the rug. He couldn't be bothered with it; he had football games to win.
I'M ANGRY. AND I'M SAD. AND I'M CONFUSED. AND I'M OVERWHELMED by the number of issues. Most of all, I’M SCARED.
DeleteBut I don’t want to give in to my fear and let it paralyze my actions, which happens when I feel the obstacle is "too big" for me to tackle by myself. But here, I know that the issue of child sexual abuse is much bigger than any one person or a university or even an entire religion can fix alone. But I don't want to the the size of the obstacle keep me from doing something to make a difference.
There's no way to justify inaction by the individuals nor Penn State U. and its administration. But Penn State and its coach’s behavior is only a symptom resulting from many underlying problems. Most folks can sit down and identify all or most of the problems that are actually the outcomes resulting from other problems or underlying issues, and that’s helpful as a starter.
But we first have to define the PROBLEM before we can begin to fix the problem. And then, what can we do to fix the problems? Not just the symptoms. How do we address all of the underlying problems? What can we do to make a difference?
I love to read and to learn. I don’t blog. I'm not a writer. When I write stuff, I usually find that I’m ranting. Fine, sometimes I feel better for a few minutes or hours, until I feel the need to rant again about the subject, or maybe on a different topic than the last rant.
Outside my cyber life, I'm a problem solver in my work role and I try to do the same in my personal life, with varying results on the personal side compared to work, where roles are more sharply defined.
But I'm overwhelmed by the scope of the problems of child sexual abuse and all of its tentacles because I know there's so much I don't know about the issues, plus I know there's a hell of a lot of things that I "don't know that I don't know".
BUT I WANT TO LEARN ALL I CAN IN ORDER TO HELP MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
What do you know that would help me help us all to make a difference?
If you have something that you can share but you’d rather not broadcast it in the comments, email me in confidence at limitedintel@hotmail.com.
Karma is awaiting Sandusky in prison.
ReplyDeleteWearing size 15w shoes, I hope!
DeleteSandusky will be dead in a year from a perforated rectum
ReplyDeleteHe will scream and no one will hear him.
Delete(Really, Dottie?)
Monster.
ReplyDeleteThis twisted monster grew older before he was caught and convicted. His young victims will suffer a lifetime of pain and difficulty.
ReplyDeleteI was molested as a child for years in my own home and my mother did nothing to protect me. She only hit me and punished me more and more for things I could not control. I despise Sandusky's wife as well. The mothers and or spouses generally know and to everyone that let the abuse go on, I hope the victims are able to sue in civil court and hold Penn state accountable too. The scars NEVER leave you and I know these young men will carry the shame, the guilt and the horror with themforever. And I don't give a rat's ass if Sandusky was abused himself as a child. I was and I didn't do the same to other children. You don't have to become a twisted monster like your perp. NOt that we don't suffer torments for life, but you go on as best you can. By Sandusky's coviction, that is the greatest victory these boys could have. It will give them back some of what was stolen from them and let them know that it DOES matter that they were abused and there are consequences for their abuser.
ReplyDelete+ 1 million
DeleteWe're not responsible for where we come from; we are responsible for what we become.
Please accept my safe, cyber hug, Anon 8:36.
We can still have a life of value and even joy, Anon @ 8:36. Hugs. Find your safe place and friends, speak the truth to them. There are many of us, and we do go on to create our own lives. But being honest about the injustice can be very healing - in our own time, at our own pace, in our own words, with the people we choose.
DeleteUnfortunately, the wife-mom doesn't always know. My ex was VERY careful to only abuse when I was at church, school, asleep, running errands or otherwise out of the house. The abuse wasn't revealed until after our divorce. When I asked them why they hadn't told me sooner, they said he told them he would kill ME if they ever told. He owned guns, so they believed him.
DeleteIt's never about the sex, it' always about the power. Like Sandusky, my ex is also a sociopath and even after 15 years in prison (yes, I went to the police unlike our church which covered it up), he still doesn't understand that he did anything wrong.
anon 8:36 PM
DeleteThanks for having the courage to share your story by speaking out.
Without your voice, no one really “gets” the scope of the problem. And if folks don’t “get it” and, therefore, recognize the magnitude of the problems we are facing ---how it affects individual victim’s lives, the victim’s relationships within their own immediate families and personal network, and the victim’s relationships as a parent as they bring forth a new generation --- we can’t begin to truly address the underlying issues in a manner that can truly bring change. Until we decide we have a problem and make a commitment to comprehensively addressing the problem, we are just “talking about the issue of the day” for the current 24/7 news cycle.
I want to give you a hug, too.
And I want to encourage you to continue to speak out. If you would be interested in sharing, drop me a line via email at
limitedintel@hotmail.com.
Thanks so much to all for your comments and to the mother that didn't know, I'm sorry about what happened to your kids, but glad you found out. The world is full of sick people. In my case, I feel I was almost set up by my mother, who put me in the room next to my father's while she moved to the bedroom far down a long hall, which gave my fathe raccess to me during the night. He'd stay up drinking half the night and then come into my room. I was the only girl in my family so I got it and my brothers escaped that particular form of abuse. In your case, your ex was craft enough to do it while you were gone. Thanks again to everyone for their comments.
DeleteWhat you said, Gryphen.
ReplyDeleteI went to Penn State in the mid-late '90s and had a lot of townie friends. Their attitude toward teenagers really bothered me. I knew multiple 20-somthing guys who were dating 14- and 15-year-olds, and everyone in that crowd seemed to think it was completely normal. No one could understand why I had issues with it or why I thought the teens were being exploited. One of the older guys actually told me I was against children's rights, because children should have the right to determine whether and with whom they have sex!!
I knew one guy who called the police on his 25-yo roommate after he caught the roomie with an underage boy. The police said, "Yeah, we know about that guy and we're keeping an eye on him, but we can't arrest him in his own house when he isn't technically doing anything illegal." (They hadn't quite progressed to sex when the roommate caught them.) The 25-yo had known for a long time already that he was on the cops' radar. They would park their cruisers and watch him when he hung around the high school. But knowing they knew about him never stopped him from doing anything, and to this day he has never been arrested or even detained & questioned.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that Sandusky's actions didn't happen in isolation. That in NO WAY excuses him or the many people who knew and didn't act on that knowledge. But I've never lived anywhere else (and I've lived a bunch of places) where age boundaries were so blurred, and relationships most of us would consider inappropriate and exploitative at best and illegal at worst, were so widely accepted and defended.
Sandusky and Todd Palin are the same, Sandusky takes advantage of BOYS, Todd Palin takes advantage of Down and Out Moms and Male Prostitutes. Your time is coming, TOAD. The Feds are slow and deliberate. Sarah can keep spewing her LIES and DRIVEL, it only exacerbates the FEDS' desire to Prosecute you GRIFTERS.
ReplyDeleteI am with the disgust for the wife and others. They are complicit. It is good to know he is going away.
DeleteIt is so strange just seeing the video of Bristol Palin and how she treats her boy. I feel so awful like I witnessed that abuse. What can people do?
I too watched the trailer for the next episode... and it made me very sad for Tripp and angry at Bristol. I am very upset at having seen this poor boy's face during this "advertisement" for this horrible terrible exploitation.
DeleteI will email Lifetime but they will probably just delete my comment. They should really be sorry they aired this. It is the wrong message to send to youngsters.
Good riddance! It took years, but justice finally caught up with this scumbag!
ReplyDeleteOdious turd. I hope he is treated in prison the same way he treated the boys who trusted him.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that child rapist got convicted. Sick bastard.
ReplyDeleteHe may have been a victim himself as a child....who knows. He certainly knew better and used his high profile status at Penn State to perpetrate the worst of crimes. May he rot in prison. I hope they put him in solitary confinement for his own sake.
ReplyDeleteThe conspiracy of silence to protect the reputation of the school is what bothers me most. Joe Paterno was told, Curley, the red headed douche who turned a blind eye on a child and did the bare minimum required. I hope they all lose sleep and their jobs.
ReplyDeleteAs a mother, Dottie Sandusky is just as guilty as her husband. I followed the case, and one kid said he yelled loudly quite a few times from the basement, and knew Dottie was upstairs and could hear him.
Those brave men who were abused as children are heroes. It took a lot of guts to testify and relive those horrid acts, I wish them healing, peace, love and the health to enjoy life, knowing the monster can't hurt anyone ever again.
I wonder how many lives would have been spared if ONE person did the right thing early on.
Ed Show reported that Sandusky faces up to 60 years, and there are at least three more victims, one is Sandusky's own adopted son. I'm grateful the system worked. Seven of the jurors had ties to or graduated from Penn State, so I was holding my breath. Relieved they set that aside and looked at the evidence.
"Those brave men who were abused as children are heroes. It took a lot of guts to testify and relive those horrid acts, I wish them healing, peace, love and the health to enjoy life, knowing the monster can't hurt anyone ever again."
DeleteYES.
Re: the jurors with Penn State ties, I'm the alum who has commented up-thread. Every alum I know is completely appalled and furious at both the abuse and the cover-up. Everyone is outraged that administrators of a school they thought had integrity proved to be complicit in the sexual abuse of children. Rather than circling wagons to protect PSU's good name, we know the school administration linked arms with Jerry Sandusky to thoroughly and irrevocably fuck up its own good name. We're furious about that. We wanted to see justice done and realized a conviction for Sandusky was the first step, and also the first step in any slim chance the school has to redeem itself.
All that to say that having ties to Penn State doesn't necessarily mean wanting to cover for Sandusky or ignore what he did. For many of us, it's the exact opposite. If anything, I expected those jurors' ties to PSU would make them more likely to convict.
The ONLY thing my friends are divided on is the treatment of Paterno. Some felt he should have been allowed to finish the season and quietly retire. I think the way they fired him was lousy and very CYA of the board, but I do think he deserved to be fired. His reputation is tarnished forever, and it's his own fault. Getting busy with football season and/or thinking someone else was handling the situation are not excuses when the safety of children is at stake. And if someone as high-profile as Paterno had gotten involved back when he heard about the shower incident, you're right, Anita, we have no idea how many children he might have saved from abuse.
Thanks for your thoughtful reply. I'm an alumni of LaSalle, and know many people from Penn State who take the same stance as you. I don't paint the whole school for the actions of the few, but it just galls me that this man had free reign even after being "admonished" by the administrators.
DeleteMy daughter is "college shopping", and we visited shortly after Jo Pat got fired, the whole campus had this "stepford wives" feel, but the vast majority of people felt the need to apologize, which spoke volumes to us about the good people who attend. No one blames them for these criminal actions and it does hurt the school's reputation.
I just hope everyone learns from this and moves on.
That creeeeep used a carrot and a stick to keep the children in line. The lure of the Penn State sidelines was the carrot and sometimes even the stick.
ReplyDeleteIt depended on each individual relationship; his cunning knew no bounds in manipulation. After all, no one was stopping him.
Anita ~ i love your post!
ReplyDeleteOops... i thought i was replying to your post at 10:10, Anita.
Deletex2!!
DeleteThanks, My experience has been that women tend to work their feelings out with other women and men more openly. Men seem to have a harder time expressing themselves, especially when sex abuse is involved. Nothing is more freeing than having our voices heard, our wrongs set right, and sharing our humanity.
DeleteThat's why these men are heroes. Their example may help others come to terms in their own lives. Shame makes us victims because it forces us to keep silent, bravery makes us heroes because it forces us to speak up. These men are to be commended.
The picture of his face makes me sick.
ReplyDeleteThere was another big pedophile verdict today in Pennsylvania.
ReplyDelete"Pennsylvania priest found guilty in landmark Catholic child abuse case -
Monsignor William Lynn is the first U.S. church official to be branded a felon for covering up sexual abuse claims."
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/pennsylvania-priest-found-guilty-landmark-catholic-child-abuse-case-article-1.1101009#ixzz1ybTKcY6c
Proud to be a Pennsylvanian today. (Can't say that very often.) Restores some of my faith in trial by jury. Was holding my breath especially in the Lynn "I-was-just-following-orders" case though.
DeleteThese 2 cases may be the beginning of the wearing down of the "old boys' networks." It'll take decades probably but it's a start.
Fellow Pennsylvanian here- in total agreement.
DeleteOT, but related. Tom Corbett makes my skin crawl, he's cut a lot of aid, redistricted, is raising taxes, and seems to be flying under the radar in the media.
Okay. ONE pig down.
ReplyDeleteBut what about the fools who did nothing? This shows us that our laws need to be strengthened by closing loopholes that allow people to get away with crap merely because they "did what they were required" by the law. How about a whistle-blower law for those who report? It would be a start.
Now, if we can just do something about the pig Catholic Priests. It is obvious the Church isn't going to do anything unless forced. But then, their history of human rights violations is extant. Look at what they did about the "Jewish question" in Nazi Germany. Signed a treaty with the German government that said Germany could (basically) do what they wanted as long as the CHURCH was left alone!!!!!!!!! Or the Inquisition. A long, violent history.
Absolute power corrupts absolutely!
I am so glad Sandusky was found guilty....I had my doubts. The horrible details the young men described are a nightmare.........I don't know how the kids survived. As a mother, I stood outside many a mens room door while my pre-teen/teen son used the bathroom. Mrs. Sandusky needs treatment as she failed miserably to protect the children and maybe some glasses to see thru the rose colored life she had lead.
ReplyDeleteI want to hear more about this child sex ring a commentor mentioned above. Please someone post some links.
Well, justice was done in the Sandusky case. Hopefully that verdict might dissuade others from following in his nasty footsteps in the future. But I can't help but wonder why hasn't the same kind of justice not been done in the almost countless cases of abuse of boys by priests that have come to light in recent years? It seems to me that there should be many priests sharing jail space with Sandusky. Surely the Catholic Church cannot cite separation of church and state when it is a criminal matter and when the Church has been involving itself so intimately in national (and local) politics so much in recent years.
ReplyDeleteYikes: Michael Reagan Manages to Trivialize Child Rape
ReplyDeletehttp://crooksandliars.com/blue-texan/michael-reagan-compares-president-obama
Now time to look at PA Governor, Tom Corbett. He was the PA Attorney General who sat on the prosecution of Sandusky for YEARS while these boys were being abused. He had some evidence, but did not actively work on the case. (That work was done by current AG, Linda Kelly, a woman). Why did he not act? He was more interested in using the resources of the AG to find evidence of corruption with the Democratic party in PA. PLUS, his successful campaign for PA Governor was paid for by PSU and Second Mile big wigs. PLUS, Corbett was upset at PSU President Spanier and PSU Coach Paterno for not endorsing his bid for Governor. He swore to get even, and he did. He is as guilty as the PSU executives who have already been fired. He knew what was going on and he did not act on it. He sat on the evidence for years in order to advance his political career. No difference than the Catholic Bishops who did nothing when they were aware of the Philadelphia priests' "indiscrete behavior."
ReplyDeleteTotally agree on all counts.
DeleteThis is the face of a monster. A sexual predator on the most vulnerable among us. Whatever punishment comes his way, it is deserved.
ReplyDeletePenn State,Pedophile Priest cleric enabler and Jehovah's Witnesses molestation big news same week.
ReplyDeleteJehovah's Witnesses hit with $28 million sex abuse settlement Oakland,Calif.-Google it.
Many court documents and news events prove that Jehovah Witnesses require two witnesses when a child comes forward with allegations of molestation within the congregation.
It has also been shown that child molesters within the organization usually have not been identified to the congregation members or the public at large.
These people engage in a door to door ministry, possibly exposing children to pedophiles.
The Watchtower corporation has paid out millions in settlement money already.
--
Danny Haszard *tell the truth don't be afraid*