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Subscribe to RSSIn court, Jerry Sandusky's wife of 45 years took the stand to defend her husband, painting unflattering portraits of several of the accusers. NBC's Michael Isikoff reports.
Updated at 6:54 p.m. ET: Jerry Sandusky's wife, Dottie, took the stand Tuesday as a defense witness in her husband's child sexual abuse trial, saying she never heard or saw her husband of 45 years behaving inappropriately around children.
The Sanduskys took a deep interest in the welfare of children because the couple were unable to have children of their own, she testified on the sixth day of her husband's trial in Bellefonte, Pa., on 51 counts alleging that he abused 10 boys over 15 years.
"We had been trying for a while, and nothing happened," Dottie Sandusky said under questioning from lawyers for her husband.
At first, the couple, who are the parents of six adopted children, took in foster children. But "we knew we couldn't take any more kids into our family, and Jerry felt there was a need to start a home or foundation like that," she said.
Prosecutors depict Sandusky, the former longtime defensive coordinator for the Penn State University football team, as having used his connection to one of the nation's premier college football programs to "groom" the boys, whom he met through his Second Mile charity for troubled children, for sexual relationships.
Former prosecutor and child advocate Wendy Murphy and TODAY's Savannah Guthrie weigh in on whether Jerry Sandusky's legal team is making their case.
Although speculation has swirled around the case from the beginning about whether Dottie Sandusky knew of her husband's alleged behavior, she hasn't been charged with a crime. She said Tuesday that she had never seen or heard her husband engaging in anything inappropriate.
Once or twice a month, other parents' children — including some of the men who testified against Jerry Sandusky — would stay overnight with the Sanduskys, she testified, apologizing several times for not being able to remember when.
Some of the alleged victims testified that Jerry Sandusky would almost always take them to the basement. One of them testified that he cried out for help as Sandusky raped him but that no one came to his assistance.
But Dottie Sandusky testified that when children stayed over, they were given a choice of where to sleep: in the basement or on the first or second floors. She said, in contradiction of testimony that the room seemed to be soundproofed, that she was able to hear sound coming from the basement while upstairs and that she never heard anyone calling out for help.
Asked why so many witnesses would want to tell the same lie about her husband, she said, "I don't know."
Psychologist: Mental disorder could explain behavior
Dottie Sandusky testified for about an hour, following a psychologist who told jurors that her husband has a personality disorder that leads him to behave in grandiose ways that observers might consider inappropriate.
Prosecutors presented a string of witnesses — including eight of the alleged victims — who described attentive behavior that progressed to inappropriate advances, oral sex and, in some cases, rape.
But the defense expert, Elliot Atkins, a psychologist in private practice in the Philadelphia area, said "histrionic personality disorder" could explain the alleged grooming behavior, a conclusion he said he reached after interviewing Sandusky for six hours and reading his autobiography, "Touched," and intimately personal email messages Sandusky sent to some of his alleged victims.
Histrionic means "dramatic" or "theatrical." People with the disorder desperately seek the approval of others and behave dramatically or inappropriately to get attention, according to the Cleveland Clinic, one of the nation's leading medical centers.
Atkins provided a similar description, saying people with the disorder "might do something dramatic to draw attention to themselves," including behaving in a way that is "inappropriately sexually provocative."
Does it matter if Sandusky has a personality disorder?
"Someone would likely, under those circumstances, desperately attempt to maintain or re-establish that relationship" with someone who had dropped out of his or her life, as Sandusky appeared to do in his email messages, Atkins said.
As part of his ruling allowing Sandusky to present the psychological evidence, the judge ordered that he also undergo an examination by a prosecution expert. Atkins acknowledged that the prosecution examiner disagreed with his assessment.
Gail Saltz, an associate professor of psychiatry at New York Presbyterian Hospital Weill-Cornell School of Medicine, said the diagnosis was highly controversial in her field.
"This would be an incredible stretch — so much that it disturbs some of my colleagues that they are bringing it up," Saltz said in an interview Tuesday on NBC's TODAY.
"This diagnosis has no bearing on your moral compass, your ability to understand what's legal," she said. "It has nothing to do with being a pedophile. it has nothing to do with sexual behavior toward children."
Full coverage of the Jerry Sandusky trial
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A string of character witnesses, meanwhile, described Sandusky him as a good and caring man with a stellar reputation in the community.
Lance Mehl, who played for Sandusky at Penn State before spending eight years in the National Football League, called Sandusky a "class act." Kelli Simco, who attended Second Mile for much of her childhood and wrote a newspaper column defending him last year, told how Sandusky arranged to pay her college tuition. Tennesa Inhoof, another woman who attended Sandusky's camps, called him "a very respected man in the community for Second Mile and all the other things he did for the kids."
Another witness said one of the men who testified against Sandusky, describing multiple incidents of alleged abuse, was unreliable and dishonest.
Megan Rash, an Army veteran who said her late brother was close friends with the man, identified in the indictment as "Victim 4," said he "was a dishonest person and embellished stories."
On cross-examination, Rash acknowledged that she had suffered a brain injury in the service and said she couldn't remember where she was deployed.
Another character witness, Jack Willenbrock, a former Penn State professor, called Sandusky "a father figure" who was "respected for what he did professionally."
On cross-examination, Willenbrock said he refused to believe the allegations against his longtime friend and had told acquaintances never to discuss them in his presence.
Defense: Police coached witnesses
Sandusky's attorneys also strongly suggested that state investigators "tainted" the investigation by telling alleged victims that there were other victims and by "refreshing" their memories after they initially said little about Sandusky in police interviews.
Pennsylvania State Police Cpl. Scott Rossman responded that it wasn't unusual for victims of sexual assaults to be reluctant to tell their stories at first. He said that at no time did investigators ever tell potential witnesses what to say.
But Sandusky's attorneys repeatedly indicated that they believed Rossman and retired state Trooper Joseph Leiter coached witnesses, zeroing in on an audiotape of their interview with alleged victim No 4.
In the tape, Benjamin Andreozzi, the attorney for alleged victim No. 4, was heard giving Leiter suggestions on how to get his client to give specifics of his relationship with Sandusky.
"Can we at some point in time say to him, 'Listen we've interviewed other kids, and other kids have told us there was intercourse and that they've admitted - is there anything else you want to tell us?'" Andreozzi was heard having said.
"Yep, we do that with all the time with other kids," Leiter was heard responding.
Andreozzi, who was called to the stand to verify the authenticity of the recording, said his client was "clearly emotionally distraught by having to go in and speak with the authorities" and that it took some time for the man to open up.
As part of their attempt to prove that the alleged victims were seeking to cash in on the case, Sandusky's lawyers also questioned Andreozzi about a possible civil suit for damages.
After lengthy discussion about what he could say under attorney-client privilege, Andreozzi reluctantly acknowledged that a guilty verdict "could have an impact, yes," if the man filed a lawsuit.
John Q. Kelly, a former New York prosecutor who specializes in high-profile criminal defense cases, said the defense had few other options unless they take the risky decision to put Sandusky on the stand. CBSNews reported Tuesday that Sandusky would testify, but his lead attorney, Joseph Amendola, refused to confirm the report.
"I think they just have to say none of it is factual, didn't happen, never went on," Kelly said in an interview on NBC's TODAY show.
"They have to do that by showing the times, the events, the places were all sort of vague and they couldn't nail down the details," Kelly said. "Therefore you have to ignore it."
Closing arguments are expected Thursday, and the jury could begin deliberations as early as Thursday afternoon.
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Leave a Comment:
She may not have heard anything, but she knew. She had to have known.
Cindy, I think quite the opposite. She may have not known for sure (saw anything), but she definitely heard something down in that basement. But, you're right, either way, she knew.
what she described on that stand was the prefect pedophile life. everyone should watch the nbc show where they flush these people out using a sting type operation. whats amazing is its everyday people you would see on a daily basis and never suspect what they are. drs lawyers business men and fathers. its incredible.
Poor lady.
She's in denial.
Yes, she may not have seen or heard any abuse. But does she not now recognize that the man she's been married to all these years is sexually attracted to little boys? - just by his own letters alone?
It's totally implausible that this woman never even suspected anything. With all the testimony, previous police reports that resulted in incomplete investigations she's just covering her husbands tracks. Of course she's going to testify this way. Of course she heard nothing. Of course she saw nothing. She's not a valid defense witness.
What are the three monkeys(no i'm not referring to blacks),I hear nothing,I smell nothing and I ? nothing! Right and you let this pervert around all of your "adopted" children.I was molested as a child and one of these days,when those children are in their 50's and before she dies ,will come forth and tell her the traumas they experienced as a child in that hellhole some people would call a home.Look for the ones who are outsiders,who have social disfunctions and have destructive personalities! They are the damaged ones.You will never know the agony this insideous crime has on its victim!
I've read a few pages of comments and haven't seen one "Judge not lest ye be judged/Let him who is without sin cast the first stone" comment. Is this the Bizarro Internet?
As long as the money kept coming in, no problem!
Seriously. I am beginning to see this a s classic "hope for the best case". with very little, if any, actual concrete proof he did all this. I, for one, don't know and I am beginning to see the prosecution as well as the defense are in similar boats; the only difference is that the burden of proof is on the prosecutor's back. The ball is in their court. This case does not seem to be coming together for teh most part and I am nor sure if the DA can defend their position with the jury and prove beyond reasonable doubt a crime was actually committed. This does not, by any means, demonstrate I am a Sandusky fan, it just means from a legal point of view the case seems to suck.You have people who say he did this and that which seem to move negatively and then you have people who say he is the greatest thing since bread and canned beer. The crime element seems to have been set aside and now the focus is on whether he is a nice guy, pillar of the community or someone with a mental disorder who may have does things that could be construed as negative actions. I hope all this works out in the end and we will see what transpires.
Most neighbors said Jeffery Dahmer was a nice quiet man. A good guy and neighbor.
Same was said about Ted Bundy.
I did not notice any mention of the testimony from the then young men whose Mothers were interviewed and told of having to ask their sons where their underwear was, and were told that the boys..." had had to discard them because they had had "an accident" at school and soiled the underclothes." In reality, the reason the boys had discarded the clothing was to hide the blood stains on the underwear. Play all the semantic games you want, the acts perpetrated on these young boys justifies a speedy death sentence. Clean the slate and move on. The man is a Monster, and the sooner he is dealt with the better.
She never heard anything. So why did the neighbors say they heard screams coming from the house? She is in as much denial as the old man. Maybe they are both sick! Makes one wonder what she was doing while the old man was "doing the boys".
What testimony in the case came from neighbors who heard screams?
Mrs. Sandusky looks like she couldn't hear an elephant phart while sitting on her ear. I thought it was his mother at first.
A lot of posters here have a reading comprehension disorder. The original intention of the defense mentioning the histrionic personality disorder was not to use it as an excuse for abuse. Rather, it was to explain the letters he sent to some of the victims. What seemed to be ' grooming' behavior was merely his need for approval and attention. Given that pedophile behavior has no known causes or cure, psychiatric research in this disorder has offered a few theories as explanations. These are professional theories, not legal BS.
Of course Sandusky's wife is saying she heard and saw nothing ! What else is she going to say ? And i'm sure this sick twisted old f_^k didn't rape these kids in front of her !!!! Every time Sandusky gives that s_^t eating grin on T.V., i want to slap it off his face. And now some friggin "Experts" are saying he has a "Disorder".
Maybe Sandusky should claim to be an ILLEGAL ALIEN. They seem to have the world handed to them on a silver platter and are untouchable. How much you wanna bet he gets off, UM, i mean, gets away with these crimes !
What else could his wife say? Admit that she knew what he was doing all along and perhaps be held liable and held up to social scorn and derision and accusation?
Or maybe like all too many spouses who are aware of what their husbands are doing she chose denial over the truth.
It is not uncommon for a wife to be in denial as to the heinous acts that her spouse commits. It's much easier than facing the truth and having to act on that truth.
I think that she chose the easiest path for her -- denial, denial, denial ... even today.
This guy's going to walk- mark my words
Would not be surprised as the jurors are made up of Penn State sympathizers and the others will not step up and do their job. Juries this day and age are incredibly weak and easily pursuaded by the most ridiculous facades defense lawyers fabricate. It is almost as if they are not capable of saying or writing the word "guilty."
I hope you're wrong
She did not see or hear anything because she chose not to. As far as a medical condiition is concerned, that is strictly a case of the defense grasping at straws, as they have no viable defense for his actions.
She's either a liar or the stupidest person on earth. They both belong in jail!
She is as stupid as he is evil.
normaly i would not jump to conclusions about people no matter what the media is saying.
but i mean common it is very clear this guy is a pedophile some of things the he admitted doing and said i mean it is just to hard to ignore.
i hope he gets charged with these counts and oneday he is in themess hall and some imates around him decide todo some good in there life and handle this peice of scum.
This man is GOING TO GO DOWN. Go down a lot. In prison.
Dottie, apparently has made a career of not noticing anything. No story here.
They should put this douche in jail for lying to cover up for that scumbag husband of hers. The only thing I suspect could be keeping her from talking is a threat from him because this POS is in the fight of his life. I would think that after living all those years with the like of a monster like Sandusky she may actually be suffering from a deep set trauma and fear of knowing that if she did say anything she could end up like the prosecutor that was going to press charges against Sandusky and then suddenly turned up missing and only recently was declared legally dead. Sandusky is a confirmed child molester and needs to be put in jail before he hurts another child. As for the wife, I honestly believe that she needs professional help after all that she has been through. Also as for her hearing anything, that is probably nothing more than a mental block that she keeps up to drown out the sound of screaming children that I am sure still ring clear in her head because she is a victim just the same as all the young boys he took advantage of. They just need to put him in jail or an institution for the criminally insane.
Great defense tactic to have Sandusky's wife trying to discredit the victims of her husband's abuse? By the way, histrionic personality disorder is totally unrelated to those who criminally sexually abuse and rarely is attributed to men. What else can they try other than to portray him as this great upstanding community citizen. Trust me, his wife had clues, if not full knowledge, of his sexual assaults toward kids.
James P. Krehbiel
author, Troubled Childhood, Triumphant Life
Great defense tactic to have Sandusky's wife trying to discredit the victims of her husband's abuse? By the way, histrionic personality disorder is totally unrelated to those who criminally sexually abuse and rarely is attributed to men. What else can they try other than to portray him as this great upstanding community citizen. Trust me, his wife had clues, if not full knowledge, of his sexual assaults toward kids.
James P. Krehbiel
author, Troubled Childhood, Triumphant Life
I can't even pretend that I know or understand what is going on here......I think the underlying page........which we may never know.......is the answer. some just want to be needed....others just prey on the needy........God is the ultimate judge of what happened here....but it doesn't look or sound good...I wish I knew the answers