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Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, left, and Karl Rominger, an attorney, walk out of the Centre County Courthouse at the end of the second day of jury selection in Sandusky's child sex abuse trial on June 6.
ANALYSIS
There has been a fair amount of chatter about the possibility of a plea bargain in the Jerry Sandusky case. At this point, however, the odds seem quite high that this case will be resolved by a jury.
Though there were some signs early in the case that plea discussions might be under way, it would be difficult for the prosecution to make an offer the defense would be willing to accept. The main reason is the defendant's age -- 68. A sentence of more than 12 to 15 years would virtually guarantee that Sandusky would never see life outside a jail cell, especially given that inmates have shorter than average life expectancy. Yet given the seriousness of the allegations against Sandusky, the prosecution could hardly agree to a sentence that would mean anything less than an effective life sentence. In some ways, the defense had little choice but to go to trial -- there was no realistic alternative.
With jury selection wrapped up, Jerry Sandusky, charged with 52 counts of child sex abuse, heads to trial on Monday. If convicted, he faces decades in prison. NBC's Michael Isikoff reports.
That doesn't mean that the defense will have an easy time of it when opening arguments start Monday. Sandusky is facing allegations that he sexually molested 10 boys, eight of whom are expected to testify. It will be difficult for jurors to believe that the accounts of all these victims are false. The defense has already previewed that it will claim that these victims had motivations to lie. Even if such a possibility can be raised for one or two of the alleged victims, jurors will wonder if eight victims would be willing to face this intense scrutiny if their tales were false. Jurors will certainly find it unlikely that a possible financial reward or public notoriety would be worth the extraordinary cost to eight different men. Each witness story enhances the reliability of the others.
Wes Oliver is a professor at Widener University who teaches criminal law and procedure. This fall he will join the faculty of the Duquesne University School of Law as a professor and director of the school's criminal justice program.The prosecution will, however, be left with a very difficult choice to make. Does it present the testimony of Mike McQueary? McQueary allegedly saw Sandusky with a young boy in a shower in a Penn State locker room. The upside for the prosecution is that McQueary is an independent witness. There is nothing McQueary could gain from inventing such a story. He thus helps negate the defense suggestion that the alleged victims had a motive to fabricate.
TruTv's Beth Karas discusses the jury that was empaneled and what could be a tough road ahead for the defense given the number of accusers.
But McQueary is also a tremendous liability. First, Mike McQueary has given differing accounts of the incident. Then there's a problem with timing. In his grand jury testimony, McQueary was certain that he witnessed the incident in March 2002 and immediately reported the matter to university officials. The prosecution recently announced, however, that the shower incident McQueary allegedly witnessed occurred in February 2001. It is not clear whether the prosecution now claims that the incident occurred in February 2001 and that McQueary contemporaneously reported it to university officials, or if the prosecution now believes that he witnessed the incident in 2001 but failed to report it until 2002.
Full trial coverage from msnbc.com and NBC News
Under either scenario, the fact that the prosecution and its star witness disagree on this date by over a year is problematic. McQueary was absolutely certain about the date in his preliminary hearing testimony. If, however, the facts at trial reveal McQueary allegedly saw the events in 2001 but did not report the events for over a year, the jury will be left to wonder why McQueary waited -- and if he saw the events in the first place. And if the state's independent witness, with no possible motive to fabricate, can't be trusted, the jury may start to wonder whether the interested witnesses can be trusted.
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Leave a Comment:
Sandusky can't be rehabilitated and the taxpayers shouldn't have to pay for his stay in jail. When he's convicted, just put a bullet in his head and dump him in a landfill.
I for one prefer to wait for the evidence to be presented before convicting somone. So far this entire case has been based solely on the word of the accusers, many of whom are seeing dollar signs in the form of their planned civil suits against the charity and Penn State. There has not been any physical evidence disclosed yet and these letters are the first indication that they have anything beyond the word of the accusers. One of the original accusers has already been shown to be a liar with evidence that he was not even on a trip with the team during which he claimed Sandusky molested him. I am not saying that Sandusky is innocent, but I would like to see more than just these kids words before I convict him. I remember all too well the McMartin preschool fiasco out here in CA that turned out to be nothing but a bunch of kids being pressured to lie by greedy parents who saw dollar signs from a big civil case. As such, I do not trust when one story coming out results in all these me too claims, particularly when the claims are about something that supposedly happened many years ago and there is no physical evidence available. Even McQueary finally admitted that he never saw any sexual contact between Sandusky and the boy, after his story about the events and time-line about what he told who and when he told them changed several times. Sandusky may well be guilty, he is certainly guilty of poor judgement showering with these young kids, but as yet no proof has been offered. If Sandusky is guilty he should spend the rest of his life in prison, but until evidence is presented that is still a big if.
I agree with the "bullet in the head" idea; this @!$%# (pun intended) can not be changed so do the best thing for sociaty; putting him in jail will jest give him access to other "@!$%#s" & will really make him happy....
JS, we should put you in a jail cell with him for an overnight stay, you will have enough evidence by morning. McQueary changed his story and heard the boy screaming as he was being raped and is why he went in there in the first place. I guess you really want to believe he is innocent? Lot's of writing for a sick SOB Predator.
The plea deal should be we will hang you quickly instead of dragging it out with a blowtorch...........
JS, I'm sorry but there is a gigantic difference between several children being pressured into saying what they did because their parents were seeing dollar signs, and these 10 grown men having reported that he did the exact same things to each and every one of them. I read the transcripts and each man said that he did the same thing time after time after time. There was virtually no discrepancies between any of their stories. And if you had one or two victims I could see where you were coming from but 10?!? Nope, nuh uh, no way, not happening. He displayed all of the grooming habits that child molesters do - gifts and bribes and the attempts to win them over so that they would trust him. And whats with his not allowing his wife down in the basement when the boys spent the night? His behavior is not normal for a 68 year old man wanting to spend so much time with so many young boys. He already admitted that he shouldn't have done that. It is also most definitely NOT normal for an adult man to WANT to shower with young boys. Does any pre teen boy or girl ever want to shower with anyone? I sure as hell didn't. And what physical evidence is there going to be when a man is fondling a boy? All very suspect and all very creepy to me. You give him far too much benefit of the doubt. Besides, its hard enough for women to come forward and say they were molested by a male, can you imagine how much more difficult it is for men to come forward and say they were molested by a man?
"McQueary changed his story and heard the boy screaming as he was being raped and is why he went in there in the first place."
Instead of immunity McQueary should have been prosecuted as an accomplice since he did not try to stop it, you cannot have it both ways. Also the jury is stacked with 10 people out of 12 who either worked at Penn State or went to school there. The Judge needs to be removed from the case AND the bench.
Good point but, the Dems don't play that way.
Plea deal automatically spells guilty and trying to get away with what is otherwise coming to you.
No deal - you freak. Hang him by his balls if found guilty.
Ourdoc - it is distinctly possible, in fact probable, that the statute of limitations had expired BEFORE McQueary told his story. He waited until he couldn't be prosecuted. You notice the date of the assault went backwards...the statue of limitations may well be 10 years.
What the hell does this have to do with Dems and Pubs??? This is a trial of a predator. Put the damn politics down every once in awhile. Blanket statements like that are so wrong and unnecessary
The court of public opinion can be a bitch!! Guilty until proven innocent...
There are just too many children accusing this giant sick rabbit" he needs to be snared as such..
JS in SD,
Again you claim you want to see evidence but you claim victims are seeing dollar signs. Where is your proof?
I don't have the slightest idea of whether Sandusky is guilty or innocent at this point............obviously the trial hasn't happened yet. But, his arrogant attitude and pompous demeanor don't bode well for him. Some of those kids may have lied or embellished their stories of Sandusky's contact with them, but I firmly feel that investigators and the DA wouldn't be bringing this to trial if there wasn't enough evidence to try him.
Sandusky seems to be a throwback to the old guard in college football. Sandusky's behavior may only be the tip of the iceberg. Child molestation aside, how many other college coaches are guilty of crimes relating to college sports? Everything from illegal recruiting to covering up sexual impropriety by college sports superstars, and worse. The Sandusky case hopefully might bring some of this to light. Do these large university sports programs deserve a thorough investigation? I think they do.
@JS - Exactly what dollar signs are they seeing? Even with McQuery not having his dates right it makes no sense that this many people would have accused him of rape if he had not done anything to them. They aren't suing him, they simply are testifying against him to send him to prison. You don't get paid for that.
The testimony of eight male victims in front of any jury will put him away forever. Time isn't on his side and the commonwealth doesn't need his bargain.
I'm not saying this man is guilty or innocent but I remember the McMartin scandal in CA a number of years ago. These were the day care people that were accused of molesting dozens of children. After all was said and done these people were innocent and the initial accusations were false and were made up by one Mother that had accused people before. She had even accused her ex for molesting her son. So I will wait until the trial is over and the jury makes their decision.
Plea deal ought to be only 25 years, if he cuts his own gear off and eyes out, then spends his sentence with man rapers.
Penn State should lose all federal funding as punishment, and a warning to other federally funded schools.
That is the only way other colleges will begin to take this seriously.
All involved in the cover-up should be arrested, charged and given due process to hopefully a conviction. It's the right thing to do. The victims deserve full justice.
JS-Are you serious?? Either you're a complete idiot or a child molestor yourself taking up for one of your own. I guess you think OJ Simpson is innocent too? I hope when Sandusky is convicted and put in jail, the other inmates torture him to death!!!
Jan, you and JS in SD need to realize that the daycare case was a completely different scenario. Those were young, impressionable children who were coerced into saying something didn't happen so they would probably get rewarded somehow and their parents could get a big payday. Compare that to grown men who were molested by a man years ago when they were children who are speaking up now. Big, huge, gigantic, enormous difference. This isn't even an apples to apples situation. Like I said in my post above, it would be one thing if only a couple of men had come forward to say this happened; there may be some credibility issues but not when there are 10 who are saying the exact same thing. And again, think of just how hard it is for these grown men to come forward and say they were molested by a man when they were when they were young, impressionable adolescents just coming into their own sexuality. Think of the psychological damage that slimedusky did to those victims. It's bad enough when a young girl is molested by a male predator, think about how much harder it is for a young boy to be molested by a male predator.
Oh and to sshoss1 who said, "I don't have the slightest idea of whether Sandusky is guilty or innocent at this point............obviously the trial hasn't happened yet. But, his arrogant attitude and pompous demeanor don't bode well for him." I'm thinking that the fact that he admitted to showering with those boys wouldn't bode well for him either. And the idiotic statements he made in the interview with Bob Costas pretty much put his guilt out there for all to see.
Maybe he will pull a rabbit out of his hat, but it's not looking good for him right now.
I think his only real option is to go to court and see if the evidence is strong enough for a conviction or not. If he is ready to cop a plea, that says something about the validity of the claims. Truly innocent men do not cop a plea. They prove their case in court.
I seriously doubt that his 10 victims would give a rats @ass if he ever saw life outside of prison. He is vile and disgusting and I hope he rots in hell when he does die.
He shouldn't be given any special considerations merely because of his age. Sorry, but if you do the crime, you do the time, regardless of whether you are 20 or 70. He should have considered the consequences before he raped these young men. His young victims have to live with the assault their entire lives.
How can it be legal for any juror to have been associated with Penn State in any way whatsoever? What is the point of even having a trial when 10 out of 12 jurors went to school or worked at the university?
The courts need to drop all these silly charges and let Jerry live his life.
Big Al-1692063 - I'd be okay with Jerry going to your house to live and be put in charge of babysitting your sons, nephews, grandsons, etc. Got a basement?
Troll.
Geez "jerry' we didn't know you could read and type also ! Find a cliff to jump from and save us all the sordid details of your immoral life style. Maybe you should tale "Papa Joe" with you.
Oooops he has gone ahead hasn't he ?
But before you go tell us where the prosecutors body is please? his family would like closure.
I wonder if this reporter, Wes Oliver can be trusted? Sandusky has already admitted doing way more than any normal person would ever be doing. He is a sodomizing homosexual predatory pedophile child rapist scum. After his miserable life ends in a violently brutal fashion (which he may enjoy), he will be on the express train to Hell.
This one is far from simple and should not be tried in the press
This, of all cases should be as transparent as possible to insure that the case doesn't get swept under the rug.
WELL I GUESS SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO !!!!!!!!!!!!!! ; this case is not about an innocent pedophile !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FOR GOD SAKES
Well, the boys are forever damaged. But justice will prevail with this sicko. It's also an upside that the man that let this whole scandal happen is dead too. RIH Paterno.
Give Scumdusky a SWEET plea deal. 30 days, Rikers Island, general population. Inform inmates of their special guest.
If he survives 30 days, he is free to go.
Odds are, he doesn't last 30 minutes.
Jury smells bad..to many penn state people judging one of their own?
Considering that Penn State is now known as the school that protects child predators, the jury may not be inclined to give him a break.
Nonsense.. this is a cover-up from beginning to end. The current Governor is involved, the current Attorney General is involved, and many of the 'elite' Penn State Board Members are involved.
And don't forget that there is still the missing prosecutor issue. And the dismissal by State Officials to pursue his disappearance by current Pennsylvania Authorities. That matter remains a mystery as to how that could happen and not be thoroughly investigated.
This freak will be absolved, he will then sue the State, the University, the prosecutors and the victims for about twelve zillion bucks and a judge who is and unofficial member of NAMBLA will find in his favor.
So you see folks crime and evil reign supreme in Penn State.
So move along, nothing to see here nothing but crimes against children and immoral acts in shower rooms and basements.
JoshBrogan, I believe you summed it up accurately. I have a question though, what is NAMBLA?
Doesn't surprise me they set it up that way. Penn State sucks. The "education" given guarantees debt and nothing more. Rich snobs profs and students have a fun time tho.
dusk18 - http://www.nambla.org/
JS, did you hear the interview with Bob Costas? How about the conversation between Sandusky and the mother of one of the "lying" victims, WITNESSED BY A DETECTIVE? Suppose you didn't hear about the love letters he wrote to at least one of "lying" victims? You are just as sick as Sandusky. Probably a PSU grad.
It was ok for micheal jackson, maybe there needs to be a little pay off ? it worked for mikey
Life and times of a packer dude
I believe they may be scrutinizing McQueary's date issue a little more closely than a competent jury would.
Recently my Sister and I had a discussion about - of all things - when the stove was purchased in our summer house. We could not remember. We narrowed it down by events and concluded with certainty that it was just before or immediately after our grandmother's passing in 1998. No doubt about it.
My sister found the purchase receipt... 1995! Ohhhh! That's when Grandma went into the nursing home, not when she passed away. I have no qualms with a 1 year discrepancy - 11 years after the fact - if the reasoning coincides with memories of other events at that time.
Heck, a lot of people can't even figure out that filing your taxes in say 2012 is actually for year 2011. They think they filed for 2012.
I don't think you can compare the purchase of a stove to the witnessing of child molestation. Purchasing a stove is a relatively mundane thing. It's not supposed to stick out in your mind.
Saavy,
Take your meds, and go to bed.
I suggest a compromise between those of you who want Sandusky shot or put in the general jail population: Put him in jail for 30 days, let him be brutally raped each day, and if he survives, shoot him. I've long thought that child abusers should be treated as vermin. I suppose they should get a trial first - except for those sickos who tape themselves raping children; they should be shot immediately.
ourdoc wrote: "'McQueary changed his story and heard the boy screaming as he was being raped and is why he went in there in the first place.' Instead of immunity McQueary should have been prosecuted as an accomplice since he did not try to stop it....."
AGREED -- and added to that is every other scumbag at that university who turned their heads, pretended that they did not see it or know about it or claimed they did not know the extent of it and that did the VERY MINIMUM to try to stop him, and so forth.
I believe there were a lot of people who knew about it and did nothing.
People let me tell you about the perspective of the child victum,scared ,more scared then you can ever imagine,feelings of being the only one this ever happened to,betrayal of the worst kind,someone you look up to and trust betrays you,how do you ever trust again,feelings of worthlessness and guilt.What did I do? Thinking it was your fault.Put all of this in the mind of a child and it changes them.Some will overcome and become a stronger person.Some will just let it eat them up.I am a very strong woman and my sister killed herself to escape the memories.Who should pay and what should they pay?? WITH THIER LIVES !!!!!
If you have ever seen first hand a trial based on sexual allegations, it is a brutal and extremely humiliating experience in and of itself. You who expound and pontificate on what the defendants motives are, I dare to venture that, if, yes IF there are dollar signs in their eyes,and Sandusky is found guilty, that is the least they should receive for being the recipient of molestation and violation from someone they trusted and at one time I would guess looked up to. The boy who was proved to be a liar was outed by his father as such long before his 15 minutes of fame was up. The media was hoping for a circus and they got one before the kid finally came clean. It shouldn't be a surprise that not every one is motivated by the almighty dollar. But maybe to some it is because that is all they can see themselves. What I find most interesting is why a man who says he is innocent keeps trying to get the case thrown out. If he is innocent, he has nothing to hide.
Youve Got 2B kidding me,
Sandusky, is this you on the vine tonight? Or just some pedophile trying to rectify your behavior???
It's unconscionable to consider making a plea deal with a pedophile, period.
Nonsense.. this is a cover-up from beginning to end. The current Governor is involved, the current Attorney General is involved, and many of the 'elite' Penn State Board Members are involved.
And don't forget that there is still the missing prosecutor issue. And the dismissal by State Officials to pursue his disappearance by current Pennsylvania Authorities. That matter remains a mystery as to how that could happen and not be thoroughly investigated.
This freak will be absolved, he will then sue the State, the University, the prosecutors and the victims for about twelve zillion bucks and a judge who is and unofficial member of NAMBLA will find in his favor.
So you see folks crime and evil reign supreme in Penn State.
So move along, nothing to see here nothing but crimes against children and immoral acts in shower rooms and basements.
Sandusky sullied the name of Penn State. He is still living in this alternate world where man-boy love in normal and if you love Penn State you'll find him "not guilty."
This child molester can live there in your 'alternate world' but we don't need to and won't.
So "Nite Nurse" go back to your rounds of molesting psycho patients at the VA hospital OK ?
By the way who the hell 'loves' Penn State?
JB, Nite Nurse was being sarcastic, spelling out what Sandusky thinks, that those who love Penn State will find him not guilty.
I don't love Penn State. It sucks.
That idiot McQueary should have had his @!$%# together before he started flappin' his gums.
Hey leroy, stop blaming Mcquery.
These allegations started way before Mcquery step on to the state penn campus.
I know, but he would be the strongest evidence against Skindusky if he'd had his @!$%# together. I applaud McQueary for coming forward but if you are going to blow the whistle, you get your story straight first; this is just common sense.
The jury having 10 of 12 jurors associated with Penn State does not mean it would favor Sandusky. Leaving aside the fact that most mid-state Pensylvanians are a conservative group who do not tolerate this kind of misconduct, there is a definite town-gown difference in State College and a definite academics-athletics difference at the university. The Attorney General should drop the counts on alleged victims #2 & #8 since trying to prove them will hurt their case. These alleged victims have not come forward and have not been identified. (Perhaps the Court should have dismissed these counts; now they are already the basis for appeal.) Further, one of these counts is where McQueary comes in. His testimony, statements, and conduct make putting him on the stand dangerous. If he does as poorly as expected (his preliminary hearing testimony was terrible), he could be the "glove/OJ" evidence which sends the case down the drain. He is not needed. The other 8 alleged victims testimony will, if accepted, provide for a sentence longer than Sandusky will live. If fact, conviction on only one count will do that. If the Attorney General does not "over-try" the case, they don't have to worry about a Penn State biased jury.
A couple of thoughts...if you live in PA it is difficult to not bump into someone with Penn State attachments, whether you have season tickets or watch the news. I live in NE and I do not know anyone in all my life long years that is NOT a Cornhusker football fan. At least PA has a couple of other sports teams that people can pay attention to, this is all we farm folk(pun intended) have.
People like the attention of being selected on a jury. Well, at least until that backfired on the folks doing the Casey Anthony trial. People love to talk about themselves more than anything else, especially if they serve on a high profile case such as this.
If this was and is only about dollar signs in civil cases, why did it take so long for these young men to come forward? I have not heard much on the delay on that. I also think that McQueary was the heir apparent to Joe Paterno, as he was making most of the calls on the sidelines while Pa was in the box looking down. If you go back years, the red head was mentioned all the time when Penn State played on tv.
This case , as it has been mentioned previously, during the week, is not any different than the Catholic Church and the masterful planning by the Pope, to put out the fire by moving them to different parishes. This "talk" was well known amongst students and faculty and staff,,,,,,,but who in their right mind wants to end a football program dynasty? Its all about the money! I have a neighbor that attended PSU and when dinner and drinks were on the table I asked and he said "sure, that was going around when I was there". And....when did Sandusky retire....and why, since Jo Pa was still going in his late 70's and early 80's as a coach.....why did he really retire? To free up more time in the basement??
Points I ponder.
I just want to say kudos to the young men who are now standing up. It is not easy having your whole life dragged out in a court of law. As hard as it is for we women, I cannot imagine what it could be like for men.
Stay strong guys, tell the truth and let the chips fall where they may. You were innocent when you were molested, and whether the trial comes out with a conviction, or the sick SOB gets away with anything less than life in prison, you were very strong to stand up and make it a little easier for the next victims that come along. You are strong, you have survived it so far, and no matter the outcome, you'll be stronger for it. Remember, the best revenge is living well.
Nonsense.. this is a cover-up from beginning to end. The current Governor is involved, the current Attorney General is involved, and many of the 'elite' Penn State Board Members are involved.
And don't forget that there is still the missing prosecutor issue. And the dismissal by State Officials to pursue his disappearance by current Pennsylvania Authorities. That matter remains a mystery as to how that could happen and not be thoroughly investigated.
This freak will be absolved, he will then sue the State, the University, the prosecutors and the victims for about twelve zillion bucks and a judge who is and unofficial member of NAMBLA will find in his favor.
So you see folks crime and evil reign supreme in Penn State.
So move along, nothing to see here nothing but crimes against children and immoral acts in shower rooms and basements.