STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — A new report commissioned by Joe Paterno's family challenges the conclusion by former FBI director Louis Freeh that the late Penn State coach conspired to conceal child sex abuse allegations against retired defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.

An executive summary of the critique released Sunday said the "observations" of Paterno by Freeh in July were unfounded. The team reviewing Freeh's work included former U.S. Attorney General and Pennsylvania Governor Dick Thornburgh, who called the report fundamentally flawed and incomplete, resulting in a "rush to injustice."

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The family released was what billed as an exhaustive response on Paterno.com.

It called Freeh's report a disservice to Paterno, the university community and Sandusky's victims.

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Freeh's findings were cited by the NCAA when college sports' governing body levied unprecedented sanctions against the football program for the Sandusky scandal.

 

Jerry Sandusky lost a bid for a new trial Wednesday when a judge rejected his argument that his lawyers were not given enough time to prepare for the three-week proceeding that ended with a 45-count guilty verdict.

Judge John Cleland's 27-page order said lawyers for the former Penn State assistant football coach conceded that their post-trial review turned up no material that would have changed their trial strategy.

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"I do not think it can be said that either of the defendant's trial counsel failed to test the prosecution's case in a meaningful manner," Cleland wrote. "The defendant's attorneys subjected the commonwealth's witnesses to meaningful and effective cross-examination, presented evidence for the defense and presented both a comprehensive opening statement and a clearly developed closing argument."

He also rejected post-sentencing motions regarding jury instructions, hearsay testimony and a comment by the prosecution during closing arguments that referred to the fact that Sandusky, who did not testify at trial, gave media interviews after he was arrested in November 2011.

Cleland said the prosecution's closing was not presented in a way that "was either calculated to, or did, create in the jurors a fixed bias toward the defendant."

Sandusky also argued that charges should have been thrown out because they were not sufficiently specific, but Cleland said the lack of specific dates did not prevent Sandusky from pursuing an alibi defense.

"The defendant has simply argued the offenses did not happen," Cleland said.

Sandusky is serving a 30- to 60-year state prison sentence for sexual abuse of 10 boys, including violent attacks on the children inside Penn State athletics facilities.

Sandusky defense lawyer Norris Gelman said Wednesday that while he had not read the decision, Cleland's ruling means an appeal will be filed to the mid-level Superior Court within the next 30 days.

The state attorney general's office, which prosecuted Sandusky, offered no immediate comment.

Also Wednesday, the Pennsylvania Senate unanimously approved a bill that aims to keep Penn State's $60 million fine to the NCAA over the Sandusky scandal within the state.

The measure, sponsored by Sen. Jake Corman, a Republican whose district includes State College, would require such fines of at least $10 million to be deposited into a state-administered account, and be spent on Pennsylvania programs that address childhood sexual abuse.

"It makes sense that it should stay here to benefit organizations and the children of the commonwealth," said Corman, who also recently filed a lawsuit over the fine, an action currently pending in Commonwealth Court. He said the money "could do an extraordinary amount of good right here in Pennsylvania."

Sen. Judy Schwank, D-Berks, said the Legislature needed to act quickly.

"The victims were from Pennsylvania, the abuse was perpetrated in Pennsylvania, and the crimes were investigated and prosecuted by Pennsylvania authorities — not authorities from other states, the federal government or the NCAA," Schwank said.

In response, the NCAA issued a statement saying it was monitoring the legislation, "including examining whether, if enacted, the proposed legislation would violate both the United States and Pennsylvania constitutions."

Penn State agreed to the fine last summer as part of a deal that averted a potential shutdown of its football program by college sports' governing body. The university has already made the first of five $12 million payments.

Gov. Tom Corbett has filed a federal anti-trust lawsuit against the NCAA over the sanctions.

Related:

Jerry Sandusky gets 30 to 60 years for child sex abuse
Expert: Penn State report ups legal risk for former president
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The state of Pennsylvania took the field on behalf of battered Penn State on Wednesday, with Gov. Tom Corbett announcing a lawsuit against the NCAA over sanctions imposed on the university in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.

"This was a criminal matter, not a violation of NCAA rules,” Corbett said at a press conference Wednesday to announce the lawsuit would be filed in U.S. District Court in Harrisburg, Pa., later in the day. "The NCAA didn't have any business in imposing these sanctions."

The university agreed in July to the sanctions, which included a $60 million fine that would be used nationally to finance child abuse prevention grants. The sanctions also included a four-year bowl game ban for the university's marquee football program, reduced football scholarships and the forfeiture of 112 wins but didn't include a suspension of the football program, the so-called death penalty.

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"Penn State does have a moral responsibility to the victims and to the community, and it has accepted that responsibility and is working with the victims in the civil courts," Corbett said, standing in front of a group of business owners on Penn State's campus in College Park. "Penn State should continue to work with the victims of sexual abuse and an effort towards prevention, so we can assure that tragedies like this never happen again. With that said, though, the NCAA shouldn't have sanctioned Penn State. I believe and our suit contends that the NCAA has no authority and operated outside of their own bylaws with these sanctions they brought."

State and congressional lawmakers from Pennsylvania have objected to using the Penn State fine to finance activities in other states. Penn State has already made the first $12 million payment, and an NCAA task force is deciding how it should be spent.

In a statement issued after Corbett's announcement, Donald M. Remy, NCAA executive vice president and general counsel, said the governor was belatedly interceding in a matter that was well on its way to being resolved.

"We are disappointed by the governor's action today," Remy said. "Not only does this forthcoming lawsuit appear to be without merit, it is an affront to all of the victims in this tragedy -- lives that were destroyed by the criminal actions of Jerry Sandusky. While the innocence that was stolen can never be restored, Penn State has accepted the consequences for its role and the role of its employees and is moving forward. Today's announcement by the governor is a setback to the university's efforts."

Penn State also issued a statement saying that it "is not a party to the lawsuit and has not been involved in its preparation or filing."

The NCAA has previously indicated that at least a quarter of the $60 million would be spent in Pennsylvania, but that continues to be a sore point with some Pennsylvania lawmakers.

Republican Rep. Charlie Dent called the NCAA's response "unacceptable and unsatisfactory" to a request from the state's House delegation that the whole $60 million be distributed to causes within the state.

Last week, state Sen. Jake Corman, a Republican whose district includes Penn State's main campus, said he plans to seek court action barring any of the first $12 million from being released to groups outside the state.

In announcing the news conference, Corbett, a Republican, did not indicate whether his office coordinated its legal strategy with state Attorney General-elect Kathleen Kane, who is scheduled to be sworn in Jan. 15.

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Kane, a Democrat, ran on a vow to investigate why it took state prosecutors nearly three years to charge Sandusky, an assistant under legendary football coach Joe Paterno. Corbett was the attorney general when that office took over the case in early 2009 and until he became governor in January 2011. 

Sandusky, 68, was convicted in June on charges he sexually abused 10 boys, some on Penn State's campus. He's serving a 30- to 60-year state prison term.

Eight young men testified against him, describing a range of abuse they said went from grooming and manipulation to fondling, oral sex and anal rape when they were boys.

Sandusky did not testify at his trial but has maintained his innocence, acknowledging he showered with boys but insisting he never molested them.

NBC News' Tom Winter and the Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Gov. Tom Corbett said Tuesday he plans to sue the NCAA in federal court over sanctions imposed against Penn State in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal. 

The Republican governor scheduled a news conference for Wednesday on Penn State's campus in State College to announce the filing in U.S. District Court in Harrisburg.

The sanctions, agreed to by the university in July, included a $60 million fine that would be used nationally to finance child abuse prevention grants. State and federal lawmakers have raised objections to the money being spent outside Pennsylvania.

A message seeking comment on the expected lawsuit was left with the NCAA on Tuesday.

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Last month, a Pennsylvania congressman said he was unhappy with how the NCAA responded to a request from the state's U.S. House delegation that the whole $60 million in Penn State fines be distributed to causes within the state.

NCAA president Mark Emmert had said in a Dec. 12 letter that a task force had been charged with allocating at least 25 percent of the fine money to programs in Pennsylvania.

Republican Rep. Charlie Dent said days later in a statement that Emmert's response was "unacceptable and unsatisfactory."

The NCAA said then that it stood by what Emmert said.

The fine was just part of college sports' governing body's sanctions on Penn State for its handling of the abuse scandal involving Sandusky, a former assistant under head football coach Joe Paterno. The landmark sanctions also included a four-year ban from postseason play and significant scholarship cuts for the marquee football program, which avoided being suspended, the so-called death penalty.

Sandusky, a former defensive coordinator, was convicted in June on charges he sexually abused 10 boys, some on campus. The 68-year-old was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in state prison.

Eight young men testified against him, describing a range of abuse they said went from grooming and manipulation to fondling, oral sex and anal rape when they were boys.

Sandusky didn't testify at his trial but has maintained his innocence, acknowledging he showered with boys but insisting he never molested them. 

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STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Penn State president Rodney Erickson admonished students who wore costumes and held offensive signs in photographs circulated on the Internet, but said in a campus-wide letter Thursday that the school won't pursue disciplinary action. 

The letter didn't specifically reference the photos or name the Chi Omega sorority, which has apologized. But Erickson said it became clear in recent days that some students "celebrated Halloween in costumes that offended others" and acted contrary to university values. 

One sign in the photo of sorority sisters says "will mow lawn for weed + beer." Two women holding signs are wearing fake mustaches. Others in the photo wore sombreros. 

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Erickson said the "disturbing behaviors" were protected by free speech rights. He said he was disappointed and dismayed, but hoped that lessons would be learned from the case. 

"The simplest of those lessons is that costumes that include blackface, or that parody or imitate a person or groups of people, are always offensive to someone," Erickson said. "They convey either a lack of awareness about the human condition and human sensitivities or, worse yet, disdain for the thoughts, feelings, histories and experiences of others. 

"It is that belief that calls upon all Penn Staters, wherever they may be, to reflect for a moment on the value of diversity in the university and the broader communities we inhabit," he added. 

Also Thursday, a posting on the Chi Omega national chapter's website said the Penn State sorority has been placed on probation. The posting cited members "portraying inappropriate and untrue ethnic stereotypes at a social function." 

Chi Omega's Memphis-based national office said it was working closely with Penn State and the school's Panhellenic Council to "implement corrective educational directives for the chapter." 

"I am disappointed in the choices made by our Nu Gamma Chapter members and we regret any pain caused," Chi Omega national president Letitia Fulkerson said in the statement. "Chi Omega does not condone behavior that violates our organization's policy on human dignity."

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HARRISBURG, Pa. — Former Penn State President Graham Spanier was arraigned and released on bail at a brief court appearance Wednesday on charges he lied about and concealed the child sex abuse allegations involving former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky.

Spanier, accompanied by his wife, signed paperwork after his bail was set at $125,000 unsecured and left a Harrisburg district justice's office where two co-defendants were arraigned last week.

After the court appearance, Spanier's attorney, Elizabeth Ainslie, proclaimed Spanier's innocence and called prosecutors' claims he was part of a conspiracy of silence "ridiculous."

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Spanier, 64, was charged last week with perjury, obstruction, endangering the welfare of children, failure to properly report suspected abuse and conspiracy for his actions in response to complaints about Jerry Sandusky showering with children. Spanier denies the allegations and has claimed he is being framed for political purposes.

Earlier: Penn St.'s ex-president charged in Sandusky scandal

He served as Penn State's president for 16 years but was forced out a year ago after Sandusky was charged along with two of Spanier's top underlings. Spanier is on paid leave as a member of the faculty.

Along with the charges against Spanier, prosecutors added counts against Tim Curley and Gary Schultz. They were arraigned Thursday. Curley, the athletic director on leave, and Schultz, the school's retired vice president, await trial in January on charges of failure to report suspected abuse and perjury.

The new charges came almost exactly a year after details of the case against Sandusky sent a maelstrom through State College, toppling longtime head coach Joe Paterno and eventually leading to severe NCAA sanctions against the football team.

Sandusky, 68, vigorously contested the charges but was convicted in June of 45 counts of abuse of boys, including violent sexual attacks inside campus facilities. He was sentenced last month to 30 to 60 years in prison.

A grand jury report alleged Spanier testified falsely that he did not know of a 1998 complaint against Sandusky, made by a mother and investigated by university police.

Full coverage of the Sandusky trial

"Spanier was obviously kept in the loop on this matter as Schultz copied him in on emails that discussed the status and conclusion of the investigation," the jury report said.

It also claimed Spanier lied about a 2001 instance of abuse witnessed by a graduate assistant, when he testified that Curley and Schultz described it only as horseplay. Email traffic among the men, jurors wrote, "make clear they are discussing an event that involves the abuse of a child."

Spanier's obstruction charges involve "numerous lies" and hiding "pertinent files and notes," alleged the grand jury report, known as a presentment.

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The report described how he addressed the growing scandal last year with the board of trustees, and how he put out statements supportive of Curley and Schultz after their arrest. The jury report said investigators were immediately able to get important records from the university after Spanier was replaced as president.

"It should be noted that Spanier continues to mislead with numerous public statements that contain demonstrably false statements," the jury claimed.

Spanier's lawyers put out a written statement law week that accused Gov. Tom Corbett, who was attorney general when the investigation began, of orchestrating the charges to divert attention from questions about why it took three years to bring charges against Sandusky. They said there was no factual basis for the Spanier charges.

"Spanier has committed no crime and looks forward to the opportunity to clear his good name and well-earned national reputation for integrity," his defense lawyers wrote. "This presentment is a politically motivated frame-up of an innocent man."

Attorney General Linda Kelly said last week the three administrators had engaged in a "conspiracy of silence" to hide the truth.

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Updated at 2:20 p.m. ET: Pennsylvania state prosecutors, citing what they called "a conspiracy of silence," on Thursday charged Graham Spanier, the former president of Penn State University, with perjury, obstruction of justice and endangering the welfare of children abused by the school's former defensive coordinator, convicted child molester Jerry Sandusky. 

The prosecutors also brought new felony charges against two former top Penn State officials -- Tim Curley, the ex-athletic director, and Gary Schultz, an ex-Penn State vice president who oversaw the campus police. Both men had been previously charged in the case and they, along with Spanier, have publicly insisted on their innocence.

"This case is about three powerful men who held high positions -- three men who used their positions to conceal and cover up for years the activities of a known child predator," state Attorney General Linda Kelly said at a news conference in Harrisburg. "This was not a mistake, an oversight or a misjudgment.

"This was a conspiracy of silence by top officials at Penn State, working to actively conceal the truth, with total disregard to the suffering of children,"  Kelly said.

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“Graham Spanier has commited no crime and looks forward to the opportunity to clear his good name and well earned national reputation for integrity,” Spanier’s lawyers said in a statement. “This presentment is a politically motivated frame-up of an innocent man. And if these charges ever come to trial, we will prove it.”

“To be clear, Tim Curley is innocent of all charges.
We are carefully reviewing the presentment and will reserve a more comprehensive comment for a later time,” Curley’s lawyer said in a statement.

They also blamed the charges against their client on Pennsylvania’s Republican Gov. Tom Corbett, saying that Kelly – whom he appointed – had brought the case against Spanier to divert attention from the fact that when Corbett was attorney general, he had failed to bring criminal charges against Sandusky in 2009  – an issue that Democrats have criticized him for. Kelly on Thursday adamantly denied that politics played any role in the case.

The new charges come nearly one year after Sandusky was arrested and charged with repeatedly abusing young boys dating back to 1998, setting off one of the biggest scandals in the history of college sports. Sandusky, the longtime deputy to the school's late legendary football coach, Joe Paterno, was convicted on 45 counts of child sex abuse last June and was sentenced last month to 30 to 60 years in state prison.

Full coverage of the Sandusky trial

Spanier, 64, a professional sociologist and family therapist, served for 16 years as president of Penn State, one of the largest public universities in the country, where he was a popular figure on campus and an active booster of the school's football program. He was fired last year, after Sandusky’s arrest, and is now facing eight criminal charges, including five felonies, each of which carry a potential prison term of seven years.

The charges laid out in a new 39-page grand jury presentment are based in part on evidence uncovered in a report last summer by former FBI director Louis Freeh. But the grand jury report also provide new details-- in part culled from previously undisclosed grand jury testimony and documents -- of how Spanier, Schultz and Curley allegedly deceived investigators and hid key information from other university officials, including the chief of the campus police and, in Spanier's case, from the Penn State Board of Trustees.

The grand jury report also provides new details about the trail of an incriminating "Sandusky file" that was kept in a file drawer in Schultz's office -- documenting a 1998 police investigation of Sandusky "with very detailed information" about Sandusky's contact with a young boy in the Penn State shower and a later 2001 allegation about Sandusky abusing another young boy in the Penn State shower.

This and other material was not turned over to prosecutors despite  grand jury subpoenas for all documents relating to the defensive coordinator between 2010 and April 2012. In all, 22 boxes of Sandusky documents, photographs and other materials were not initially turned over in response to the subpoeanas and, as a result, the investigation into Sandusky was "signficantly thwarted and frustrated," the grand jury report states.

According to the new grand jury report, the Sandusky file was removed from Schultz's office by his administrative assistant last year and delivered to his home on Nov. 5, 2011, the same day the then-Penn State vice president was first charged in the case. A previous assistant testified she was given an "unusual request" by Schultz to never "look in" the Sandusky file and that the request was delivered in a "tone of voice" she had never heard him use before.

The new grand jury report states that the emails and other documents show that Spanier, Curley and Schultz at first agreed to report to child welfare authorities a 2001 allegation by former graduate assistant Mike McQueary that he saw Sandusky sexually abusing a young boy in the Penn State shower. One indication of how serious they took it was found in documents showing that Schultz sought legal advice from Penn State's outside lawyer, Wendell Courtney, who billed the school for a "Conference with G Schultz re reporting of suspected child abuse."

But Curley later changed his mind "after talking it over with Joe" -- a reference to the late coach Joe Paterno. (At the news conference, Kelly declined to speculate on whether Paterno would have been charged in the case had he been alive.) They then developed a new plan to encourage Sandusky to seek professional help. "This approach is acceptable to me," Spanier wrote in a Feb. 27, 2001, email to Curley and Schultz.

Spanier added: "The only downside for us if the message isn't 'heard' and acted upon, and we then become vulnerable for not having reported it. But that can be assessed down the road. The approach you outline and a reasonable way to proceed."

According to the new grand jury report, Spanier initially told investigators in March 2011 that he knew nothing about the 1998 police probe of Sandusky (despite emails showing he was briefed on the investigation) and was given only sketchy information about the 2001 allegation, believing that involved only a contention of Sandusky "horse playing around" with a child. And he later made similar comments before a grand jury, including testifying  that there was "no discussion" about reporting the 2001 incident to child welfare or police -- part of the basis for the perjury charge against him.

The report says that Spanier never told the Penn State trustees about either the 1998 or 2001 allegations. When he did brief the board in May 2011 -- after a newspaper story first disclosed the investigation into Sandusky -- Spanier directed the university's chief lawyer, Cynthia Baldwin, to leave the room and then "specifically informed the Board that the investigation had nothing to do with Penn State and that the investigation was regarding a child in Clinton County [Pennsylvania] without affiliation with Penn State," the grand jury report states. 

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Several victims of child sexual abuse by Jerry Sandusky are "satisfied" and "happy" to know that the former Penn State assistant football coach will almost certainly die in prison, their attorneys told NBC News on Tuesday.

Sandusky — who was defensive coordinator for Penn State's powerful football team for three decades — was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison Tuesday in Bellefonte, Pa., for abusing 10 boys he met over 15 years through his Second Mile charity for troubled children.

Sandusky, 68, could have faced more than 400 years for his convictions on 45 counts of child sexual abuse, but McKean County Common Pleas Court Judge John Cleland chose to follow state sentencing guidelines. Even with the shorter sentence, Cleland told Sandusky that the sentence means he will remain locked up "for the rest of your life."

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That's the important thing, said Matt Casey, an attorney for Victims 3, 7 and 10, none of whom NBC News is identifying.

"They have confidence that Judge (John) Cleland took his obligations seriously," Casey said in an interview with NBC 10 of Philadelphia. "Jerry Sandusky is never going to get out of prison."

Casey acknowledged that the sentence was shorter than he had expected, saying, "If you walk through the individual accounts, there may be some sentences that we might take issue with."

Read the full sentencing order (.pdf)

But "the man is going to die in prison," he said. "That he will never be able to do this to anyone else probably was the most important part of this for our clients."

Jeffrey Fritz, the attorney for other victims — including the young man identified in the indictment as Victim 4, who angrily addressed Sandusky in court Tuesday — said the young man was "happy to know that Jerry Sandusky will live the rest of his life in prison."

Legal analysis: Sandusky sentencing was logical and reasonable

Ghosts of Sandusky's dreams haunt empty home where his charity was born

Victim 4 told Sandusky: "You should be ashamed, and those who covered up should be held accountable for your actions. I don't forgive you, and I don't know that I ever will."

Another of Sandusky's victims told the court that the sentencing "will never erase what he did to me — it will never make me whole. I will never erase his naked body against me.

"But he must pay for his crimes, which he has been properly been convicted of," the young man said.

Fritz told NBC News that all of the young men continue to undergo counseling, but he said it was time to stop calling them "victims."

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"What's important to note today is these are victims that are transitioning into survivors, and they're no longer victims," he said. "They are doing what they can to move on with their life as best they can, despite the horror."

Correction: Jeffrey Fritz, an attorney for a victim in the Jerry Sandusky case, said it was time to stop calling the young men “victims.” An earlier version of this report incorrectly attributed the statement.  

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ANALYSIS

Jerry Sandusky's criminal trial did not draw the attention of the nation because there was some uncertainty about the outcome.  And though there is little reason to doubt he will be ordered to spend the rest of his life in prison when he is sentenced on Tuesday, our continuing interest in this case has little to do with the issues the court has to decide. 

Based on the jury's finding of guilt on 45 of the 48 counts, the former Penn State defensive coordinator and founder of the Second Mile charity for underprivileged kids could be sentenced to a maximum of over 400 years. But the judge is not required to sentence him to anything near that. Six of the offenses carry mandatory minimums of 10 years. This does not, however, mean that Sandusky must receive a minimum of 60 years in jail.  The judge will have to determine whether Sandusky serves his sentence for these individual offenses concurrently -- meaning simultaneously -- or consecutively.

None of the other offenses has such a low-end boundary, so the 68-year-old Sandusky could theoretically be sentenced to as little as 10 years. 

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Those unfamiliar with the criminal justice system often find it bizarre that a defendant could serve time for two or more crimes at once.  After all, a prisoner serving two 30-year sentences at the same time is being punished the same as a person serving the same sentence for a single crime.  Practical realities, however, require this common occurrence.  If defendants were not routinely able to serve sentences simultaneously, a very substantial number of prisoners would be serving life sentences for offenses far from the worst in our criminal codes.

Ex-Penn State football aide McQueary files $4M whistleblower lawsuit

Sentencing guidelines in many states like Pennsylvania instruct the judge on the appropriate sentence for each individual count. For instance, the judge is required to give Sandusky an indeterminant sentence of 10 to 20 years on the involuntary deviate sexual intercourse counts.  But judges in Pennsylvania, as is common throughout the country, have almost absolute discretion to determine whether the sentences for those counts will be served consecutively. So the judge's determination of which sentences should be served consecutively will thus be the single greatest factor determining the actual number of years Sandusky receives.

That means that Judge John Cleland has the discretion to give Sandusky a sentence that would permit him to be released after 10 years, just as he has the discretion to give him a sentence that could require him (in theory) to spend over 400 years in prison.  Given the number and seriousness of the counts, the lower end of this range seems improbable -- for any judge.

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For some judges, the upper end of this range would be an attractive option.  But anything greater than 25 years would mean a life sentence as a practical matter. In other words, Sandusky's life would not be changed, practically speaking, by adding another 375 years to a 25-year sentence.  A judge could see a multi-century sentence as a way to send a strong message to would-be child molesters without changing either a defendant's punishment of the state's cost of incarceration.  More cynically, a judge presiding over a case with this type of profile could see a multi-century sentence as a way to grab headlines and increase his reputation as someone who dealt severely with America's best-known serial pedophile.

But Cleland is not a grandstander.  We saw that time and again throughout the course of the criminal proceedings.  He thoughtfully considered defense motions.  Despite community pressure, he rejected a prosecution request that Sandusky not be permitted to sit on his back porch while out on bond.  His tone and demeanor were measured throughout one of the most closely watched criminal cases in the history of the country.  His sentence may approach the century mark, but a maximum sentence seems unlikely. 

Nothing about Cleland -- or the seriousness of the facts of this case -- suggests, however, that Sandusky will receive a sentence of less than 25 years.  And that means a life sentence.  So the only real question is how he will serve out that sentence.  The Department of Corrections makes this determination and thus has a much larger role than Cleland in determining what the rest of Jerry Sandusky's life will be like.

'Shameful': Sandusky victim sues Penn State

A battery of tests will be conducted to determine Sandusky's mental state, physical condition, his risk to others and the risk that others pose to him.  He will then be classified for a level of security – minimum, medium, close or maximum.  No one factor is determinative, though the serious nature of the offenses will certainly be a factor.  The availability of housing meeting his security level will determine his specific placement and in making that determination, there is no official policy to prefer a facility close to the inmate's family.  He could be placed anywhere in Pennsylvania.

The Department of Corrections will further have to determine whether measures are needed to protect Sandusky from other prisoners.  If inmates express concern for their safety, the department takes that into consideration. But  Sandusky has expressed a desire to be in the general population, at least at his present facility.  If there is a safety concern, he could be given an individual cell, but otherwise remain in the general population. Or he could be placed in what is known as a special needs facility.  In such facilities, there is greater supervision of the inmates due to their risk of victimization because of factors like age, or mental impairment.  He could also be placed in administrative segregation for his protection, which would amount to solitary confinement for 23 hours a day. The department does not, however, have a presumption that child sex offenders will be at risk for victimization merely because of their crimes.

The Department of Corrections, over the next month, not at Tuesday's sentencing hearing, will determine what the rest of Jerry Sandusky's life is like.  Just as the result of his trial was fairly certain, so is the practical result of his sentencing.  Practically, the few issues that remain relate only to the level of his custody and will not be affected by his sentence.

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It is not surprising, though, that there is still considerable interest in Tuesday's hearing.  Despite its foregone conclusion, Sandusky's trial drew an international audience.  Our interest in the legal proceedings against Sandusky was never really about the law at all.  The Bellefonte, Pa., courtroom provided merely a backdrop for our view of this human tragedy.  Tuesday's sentencing hearing provides the last glimpse that focuses on Sandusky's role in the tragedy.  Soon enough we will turn our attention, with the trial of Penn State officials, to the role of university officials and, as a context for understanding their actions, the part played legendary Penn State football Coach Joe Paterno in this tragedy.  

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Former Penn State football assistant Mike McQueary on Tuesday filed a whistleblower lawsuit seeking $4 million from the university, claiming he was made a "scapegoat" for the university's failures to rein in a coach accused of sexual assault.

McQueary is the staffer who said he witnessed assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky having sex with a boy in the locker room in 2001, and reported what he saw to head football coach Joe Paterno and other university officials. Other boys were assaulted on campus before Sandusky, 68, was found guilty in 2012 of 45 counts of child sexual abuse.

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Here is a copy of the lawsuit in a PDF file.

The lawsuit says McQueary is seeking $4 million. His base salary in 2011 was $140,400 plus bonuses and benefits, making his anticipated earnings over the next 25 years at least $4 million. McQueary says he was placed on administrative leave a week after a grand jury found that university officials made false statements about what McQueary had told them. Gary Schultz, a former senior vice president at Penn State, and Tim Curley, the former athletic coordinator, are accused of lying to a grand jury about what they knew of sex abuse allegations against Sandusky. The university has been paying the legal fees of other Penn State employees in the case, but not McQueary's.

McQueary was a graduate assistant football coach from 2000 through 2003, and then an assistant football coach until 2011. He said he saw Sandusky engaging in sex with a boy who appeared to be 10 to 12 years old in the staff locker room of the Lasch Football Building. He said he reported the incident to his supervisor, Coach Paterno, the next day, and then was invited to tell the story to Schultz and Curley. He said he relied on their statements that they would take action. Schultz supervised the university police department.

Penn State Communications Director David LaTorre said Tuesday, "We won't have a comment."

McQueary also is seeking compensation for having his automobile privileges revoked, compensation for early withdrawls from his retirement account, bowl game bonuses from the 2011 season, back pay through Sandusky's trial, and his legal expenses.

The university's internal Freeh report described what happened in 2001:

"On Friday, February 9, 2001, University graduate student Michael McQueary observed Sandusky involved in sexual activity  with a boy in the coach's shower room in the University's Leach Building. McQueary met with and reported the incident to Paterno on Saturday, February 10, 2001. Paterno did not immediately report what McQueary told him, explaining that he didn't want to interfere with anyone's weekend."

 "Upon opening the locker room door, McQueary heard 'rhythmic slapping sounds' from the shower. McQueary looked into the shower through a mirror and saw Sandusky with a 'prepubescent' 10- or 12-year-old boy. McQueary saw Sandusky 'directly behind' the boy with his arms around the boy's waist or midsection. The boy had his hands against the wall, and the two were in 'a very sexual position.' McQueary believed Sandusky was 'sexually molesting' the boy and 'having some type of intercourse with him' although he 'did not see insertion nor was there any verbiage or protest, screaming or yelling.'"

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HARRISBURG, Pa. -- A young man who testified against Jerry Sandusky sued Penn State on Friday for its "deliberate and shameful" handling of complaints that the former assistant football coach behaved inappropriately and sexually toward boys.

The suit filed by the person known as Victim 1 at Sandusky's trial said university officials made deliberate decisions not to report Sandusky to authorities.

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It described their actions as "a function of (Penn State's) purposeful, deliberate and shameful subordination of the safety of children to its economic self-interests, and to its interest in maintaining and perpetuating its reputation."

The complaint was filed electronically in Philadelphia state court Friday night, Slade McLaughlin, a lawyer for Victim 1, told The Associated Press. The young man's initial accusations sparked the investigation that led to criminal charges against Sandusky and two university officials.

Sandusky, 68, was convicted in June of 45 criminal counts for sexual abuse of boys, both on and off campus. He awaits sentencing that will likely send him to prison for the rest of his life.

Penn State ex-president Graham Spanier: Freeh report on sex scandal is wrong

Victim 1 and his mother reported Sandusky to the boy's high school and the Clinton County child protective agency in November 2009. Their complaint triggered the state investigation that last year resulted in the criminal charges.

Former Penn State administrator Gary Schultz and athletic director Tim Curley, who is on leave, were charged with perjury and failure to report suspected child abuse. Both deny the allegations and are expected to go on trial in January.

Famed football coach Joe Paterno was fired. He died last January.

The suit draws heavily from court testimony, grand jury investigations and Penn State's own investigative report, conducted by former FBI director Louis Freeh. The report details how university officials handled the claims against Sandusky and Sandusky's behavior. Victim 1 is known as "John Doe C" in the complaint. The suit names no other defendants than the State College university.

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University spokesman Dave La Torre said the school has no comment on the pending litigation.

"The university takes these cases very seriously," La Torre said, adding that the current president and board "have publicly emphasized that their goal is to find solutions that rest on the principle of justice for the victims."

The suit claimed that a "special relationship" between Penn State and The Second Mile, a Sandusky-founded charity for youth, gave Sandusky a respectable public image and connections that enabled him to perform criminal acts.

It alleged "(Penn State) believed its reputation and economic interests would be adversely impacted if the public learned that a man closely associated with the school's football program was, in fact, a pedophile."

The Second Mile's future remains uncertain, subject to a legal dispute.

'Numerous victims'
According to the lawsuit, Victim 1 met Sandusky about eight years ago, when the boy was 11 and a first-year participant in a camp sponsored by The Second Mile. In his second year, the boy drew Sandusky's attention and accepted invitations to spend nights at the coach's State College home and to attend professional sports events, the suit said.

Over a three-year period ending in 2008, the suit said, Sandusky assaulted the boy more than 100 times, including fondling and oral sex. The lawsuit claims Sandusky attacked "numerous victims over a span of 30 years," but noted that his criminal trial was limited to a 15-year period and 10 victims.

Following Victim 1's testimony, Sandusky was convicted of all six counts that related to him, including involuntary deviate sexual intercourse for instances of oral sex.

The suit alleged negligence, fraudulent concealment, intentional infliction of emotional distress and civil conspiracy. It said Victim 1 has suffered physical and emotional injuries and will likely need medical and psychological help well into his future. The suit seeks compensatory and punitive damages.

Another Sandusky accuser has filed a federal lawsuit related to the scandal and a second victim has filed a court notice that he will file complaint. Lawyers have suggested others may take legal action.

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The Penn State University president forced to step down by the sexual abuse scandal that rocked the school on his watch broke his silence about the ordeal in an exclusive interview with The New Yorker this week.

Graham Spanier, 65, said he "is in a mode of substantial grief about what happened to those kids," referring to children sexually assaulted by former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. But Spanier told The New Yorker that he rejected the damning assessment in the Freeh report laying out how university officials failed to stop Sandusky from sexually abusing boys on school property.

"The Freeh report is wrong, it’s unfair, it is deeply flawed, it has many errors and omissions," said Spanier, speaking to New Yorker reporter Jeffrey Toobin. "They interviewed, they say, over four hundred and thirty people; many of those folks have spoken to me about their interviews. Many of them describe those interviews to me as a witch-hunt."

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Sandusky, 68, was arrested in November 2011 on charges that he sexually abused boys as young as 10, many of them encountered through his charitable foundation for disadvantaged youth, Second Mile. Sandusky was found guilty of 45 counts of child sexual abuse. He is in jail awaiting sentencing.

The Freeh report, released July 12, looked into the role of individuals and the institution of Penn State in failing to stop Sandusky. It focused on two incidents — a 1998 sexual abuse complaint that was investigated by police and a 2001 eyewitness report of Sandusky apparently involved in sexual activity with a 10- to 12-year-old boy in a shower.

The 276-page report on the findings from a special investigation led by former FBI Director Louis Freeh named Spanier one of "the four most powerful people" at Penn State "who failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade."

The other three are former head football coach Joe Paterno, who died in January, former Penn State vice president Gary Schultz and former university athletic director Timothy Curley — both of whom are charged with failing to report the allegations of sexual abuse by Sandusky, and of committing perjury when questioned by a grand jury. Their trials are expected to begin in early 2013.

Spanier was forced to step down as president but remains on staff as a tenured professor in the Sociology Department. He is not charged with anything.

According to the Freeh report, however, "Spanier failed in his duties as president" in handling reports related to Sandusky. It said Spanier and others "repeatedly concealed critical facts relating to Sandusky’s child abuse from the authorities, the University’s Board of Trustees, the Penn State community, and the public at large."

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Penn State, now led by Rodney Erickson, accepted Freeh’s findings in their entirety.

In the lengthy interview with The New Yorker, Spanier, said he can recall only one substantive conversation with Sandusky in his career. He disputes that he had any knowledge of sexual abuse, maintaining that the incident had been presented to him as unseemly "horseplay" in the shower, and then handled without apparent need of his intervention.

"I never, ever heard anything about child abuse or sexual abuse or my antennae raised up enough to even suspect that," Spanier said in the interview, who maintained that the email cited in the Freeh report was taken out of context to support a false conclusion.

He rejected the notion of a cover-up.

"I’m very stunned by Freeh’s conclusion that — I don’t think he used the word 'cover-up,' but he uses the word 'concealed.' I’m totally stunned by that, because why on earth would we? There’s no logic to it. Why on earth would anybody cover up for a known child predator? Adverse publicity? For heaven’s sake."

In the wake of the Sandusky scandal, Paterno was forced out and died shortly thereafter. In the New Yorker interview, Spanier lauded the late coach for his integrity. 

"He had tremendous energy, he had great enthusiasm for life, he had tremendous integrity, and I would say this to anybody — he was tough on the rules. He was always trying to do the right thing," Spanier said, according to The New Yorker.

After the release of the Freeh report, the NCAA fined Penn State’s football program $60 million — roughly the amount the team has earned annually — to be applied to fighting child abuse. The college athletic governing association also cut the number of football scholarships Penn State can offer in coming years and erased more than a decade worth of football victories from the official record. That meant Paterno was no longer the winningest football coach ever.

Spanier told The New Yorker that Penn State’s decision to accept the Freeh report conclusions was probably an effort on the part of the university to put the scandal behind them as soon as possible.

"Unfortunately, what the university did was to accept the report. Not to receive it, which I think an organization would generally do, but to accept it. By accepting the report, the N.C.A.A. and the Big Ten then said, well, if the university accepts this report, we accept it, so we don’t need to do an investigation. They’ve signed an agreement with us saying it’s a done deal, we accept it, and they imposed the most severe set of penalties in the history of athletics." 

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