Former Penn State University athletic director Tim Curley, left, and ex-Penn State Vice President Gary Schultz are charged with lying to a grand jury investigating suspected child abuse involving the university's former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.

ANALYSIS

Many probably thought -- and hoped -- that the verdict in Jerry Sandusky's child sex abuse trial would end a very uncomfortable national conversation. The criminal proceedings still pending against former Penn State officials Tim Curley and Gary Schultz will dash that hope.  

Wes Oliver is a law professor and director of the Criminal Justice Program at the Duquesne University School of Law.

Curley and Schultz are accused of failing to report their suspicions about Sandusky’s behavior with minors to law enforcement authorities in 2001 and lying to the grand jury that investigated Sandusky in 2011.  Both men have pleaded not guilty to all the charges. At a hearing on Thursday, attorneys for both men and prosecutors will argue several pretrial motions, including one to dismiss the charges.

If the charges are not dismissed or pleaded out and the case goes to trial, they will require a judge or jury to determine how complicitous these men -- and perhaps others -- were in facilitating Sandusky's crimes. 

The perjury count in this case is somewhat unusual. At the time of the preliminary hearing, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania argued that Curley and Schultz lied to the grand jury when they characterized Mike McQueary's report of a 2001 incident in a Penn State shower room as "horsing around" that did not involve criminal conduct. Their testimony otherwise matched that of McQueary's father, John, who was called to testify as a corroborating witness. McQueary's father testified that McQueary described inappropriate and possibly sexual conduct. 

Until March 30, 2012, the prosecution's case rested entirely on the legal conclusions these men drew from the facts that the younger McQueary related to them. Unless the prosecution could show that Curley and Schultz believed in January 2011 when they testified before the grand jury that Mike McQueary described a crime to them in 2001 -- a very difficult task -- then this count was doomed to fail. 

Read more legal analysis from Wes Oliver

But in March, the prosecution responded to a defense request to explain exactly the falsehoods it was alleging occurred in the grand jury testimony.  In addition to the legal characterizations about the incident that the prosecution claimed amounted to perjury, the Commonwealth added some new claims. Curley, Penn State’s former athletic director, denied knowing anything about the 1998 incident. Schultz, a former vice president at the university, claimed that both the 1998 and 2001 incidents were reported to a child protective agency and that when he learned of the 2001 incident, he did not look into the 1998 allegation. Email traffic has demonstrated these statements to be false.  

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As the prosecution continues to base the perjury count -- at least in part -- on Curley and Schultz's characterization of the events, however, the trial will turn on the information they had about Sandusky in 2001.  Questions long asked will be renewed.  If Mike McQueary saw, and reported, a very serious and criminal incident in a shower, why did he do nothing to stop it?  If McQueary described molestation to the late Joe Paterno, Penn State’s legendary football coach, why did Paterno not immediately call Curley, Schultz or the police?  What did McQueary -- who described anal sex to the grand jury, but two or three slapping sounds and an awkward moment at the preliminary hearing -- actually say to Curley and Schultz? 

In many ways, the issues in a Curley-Schultz trial will be more compelling than the issues in the Sandusky trial.  With the jury's “guilty” verdict in Sandusky's case, we can now identify him as a pedophile without undermining any presumption of innocence.  He was driven by warped motivations. A psychosexual disorder with a focus on adolescents -- a diagnosis the Commonwealth's expert opined may apply to Sandusky -- is by definition a disorder.  

But what about those rational people who allegedly facilitated him?  What signs were they willing to ignore rather than risk Penn State's reputation? The Freeh Report characterized Curley and Schultz -- as well as then-University President Graham Spanier and the beloved Paterno -- as being fully aware of the threat Sandusky posed to young men on the campus.  The defense of Curley and Schultz will necessarily challenge this characterization and will no doubt be a welcomed voice to this national conversation by staunch Paterno supporters still reeling from the NCAA's invalidation of the school's football victories after 1998.     

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Gene J. Puskar / AP

Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky is awaiting sentencing for sexually abusing boys, including one identified in court documents as Victim 2.

Updated at 8:01 a.m. ET on July 27: HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Lawyers for a man who claims to be the unknown victim abused in a Penn State shower by Jerry Sandusky in a case that led to Joe Paterno's firing say he intends to sue the university.

The lawyers also released two audio clips that they say are phone mail messages from Sandusky to their client, referred to in court documents as Victim 2.

In the messages from September 2011, which can be heard in the links below provided by the lawyers, Sandusky talks about moving forward and having nothing to hide. In one message, Sandusky offers an invitation to a Penn State football game. He ends both calls with "love you."

You can hear audio of an alleged message from Sept. 12, 2011, here.

You can hear audio of an alleged message from Sept. 19, 2011, here.

The lawyers, Andrew Shubin, Justine Andronici, Matt Casey and Joel Feller, said in a statement that they have done an extensive investigation and gathered "overwhelming evidence" on details of the abuse.

The statement reads in part:

"Our client suffered extensive sexual abuse over many years both before and after the 2001 incident Michael McQueary witnessed in the Penn State Lasch building shower. Penn State has now admitted and there is no longer any question that its top officials could have and should have prevented these acts. Jerry Sandusky's abuse of Victim 2 and other children is a direct result of a conspiracy to conceal Sandusky's conduct and the decisions by top Penn State officials that facilitated and enabled his access to victims. We intend to file a civil lawsuit against Penn State University and others and to hold them accountable for the egregious and reckless conduct that facilitated the horrific abuse our client suffered.

Our client has to live the rest of his life not only dealing with the effects of Sandusky's childhood sexual abuse, but also with the knowledge that many powerful adults, including those at the highest levels of Penn State, put their own interests and the interests of a child predator above their legal obligations to protect him."

Penn State says it cannot comment on pending litigation.

Prosecutors have said they don't know the identity of the boy molested by Sandusky in 2001. The encounter was spotted by former graduate assistant football coach, Mike McQueary, who reported the abuse to school officials, including Paterno, but none of them told police. McQueary said he saw Sandusky and the boy -- now a grown man -- in an "extremely sexual" position in a locker room shower one night. He was a key prosecution witness at Sandusky's trial.

The victim is not named in the attorneys' statement.

Sandusky awaits sentencing after being convicted in June of 45 sex abuse counts related to molesting 10 boys, including Victim 2.

A seven-month investigation by former FBI Director Louis Freeh, commissioned by Penn State, concluded that Paterno, then-university President Graham Spanier and two other top Penn State administrators concealed abuse by Sandusky to avoid bad publicity, thereby enabling Sandusky's crimes to continue.

Below is a transcription of the phone mail messages:

 Sept. 12, 2011:

"…Jere. Um. I am probably not going to be able to get a hold of anybody. Um. Uh. Probably ought to just go forward. Uh. I would be very firm and express my feelings, uh, upfront. Um. But, uh, you know, there is nothing really to hide so. Um. If you want, give me a call. You can call me on my other cell phone or on this one, either one so. Alright, take care. Love you. Uh. Hope you get this message. Thanks."

 Sept. 19, 2011:

"…Just calling to see you know whether you had any interest in going to the Penn State game this Saturday. Uh. If you could get back to me and let me know, uh, I would appreciate it and when you get this message, uh, give me a call and I hope to talk to you later. Thanks. I love you.”

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When the NCAA and the Big Ten conference announced punishing sanctions for Penn State on Monday in the Jerry Sandusky sexual abuse scandal, the impact for the school’s vaunted football team was tangible and immediate.

What’s harder to calculate is how much damage the scandal will cause to the rest of Penn State. Here’s why: The crisis was unprecedented — striking at the heart of the university’s identity, involving crimes that took place over a long period and implicating figures at the highest levels of university administration.

Penn State commissioned the investigation led by former FBI director Louis Freeh, upon which the NCAA sanctions were based, but crisis management experts suggest that it was just a first step needed to reassure donors, alumni, students and applicants to the school.

"They will have to do a lot to come clean," said Larry Barton, president and professor of management at the American College in Bryn Mawr, Pa., and author of several books on crisis management. "It’s not going to go away merely by changing the cover of the alumni magazine to show a professor of anthropology."

The NCAA sanctions include a $60 million fine against Penn State’s football program — 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 the late Joe Paterno is no longer the winningest football coach ever.

The Freeh report "presents an unprecedented failure of institutional integrity leading to a culture in which a football program was held in higher esteem than the values of the institution, the values of the NCAA, the values of higher education, and most disturbingly the values of human decency," according to the NCAA conclusions and sanctions.

The Big Ten conference then barred Penn State from playing in postseason bowl games for four years, forfeiting an expected $13 million in revenue.

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The measures were "staggering" in scope with "potential to impact the program for a decade, if not much, much longer," NBC sports reported.

How much more will the sanctions and scandal scar the university?

Typically, donations to athletic donations take a hit when the crisis’ epicenter is in the athletic department, said Rae Goldsmith, vice president at the nonprofit Council for Advancement and Support of Education in Washington, D.C.

"There is traditionally a pretty specific division between giving to academics and giving to athletics," said Goldsmith. "When a crisis hits athletics you can see a hit to giving for athletics but not to academic programs."

On July 9, the university announced that a record number of individual donors had contributed a total dollar amount that was second highest in university history — $208.7 million — during the 2011-2012 fiscal year. That included money for the Nittany Lions.

The university trumpeted the "steadfast support" by alumni and friends "despite a year that was marked by unprecedented challenges."

However, those results cover the full fiscal year — going back to months before the scandal became public.

They were also announced a few days before the release of the Freeh report, which was a detailed and scathing indictment of key figures at the university who failed to act on eyewitness information of Sandusky apparently raping a child in campus showers and other information.

Related content: 

• What the Freeh report says about Sandusky's associates
• Expert: Penn state report ups legal risk for former president
• Former Penn State president says he didn't cover for Sandusky, didn't know details

The report emphasized the roles what it calls the "four most powerful people" at Penn State — "who failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade." It said they "concealed Sandusky’s activities from the Board of Trustees, the University community and authorities."

Among them was revered head football coach Paterno, Penn State President Graham Spanier, athletic director Timothy Curley and vice president Gary Shultz. All four were forced out of their jobs over the scandal.

Paterno was fired Nov. 9, and died two months later. Spanier was forced to leave his leadership post, but remains on at Penn as a tenures professor. Curley and Schultz are facing charges of failing to report alleged abuses and of perjury.

Sandusky was convicted on 45 counts on June 11 and is in jail awaiting sentencing.

In the near term, there are some tangible costs to Penn State as a whole.

The $60 million fine puts a dent in football revenue that is normally used to support non-revenue sports.

And NCAA President Mark Emmert said at Monday’s press conference that the money could not "come at the cost of reduced programs in the athletic department and other student scholarships."

In an email response to a query about covering that cost, Penn State spokesman David LaTorre wrote: "The University will use its athletics reserve fund, capital maintenance budget and if necessary, an internal bond issue, to address the fine. We’re pleased the funding will be used toward important programs to help children who are victims of child abuse."

Moody's Investors Service said Tuesday that it may cut its rating on Penn State's credit because of the sanctions and the scandal laid out in the Freeh report, which it said could hurt student enrollment and fundraising for the university, the Associated Press reported. Moody's says Penn State has about $1 billion in debt.

Goldsmith said the scandal may take a toll on student enrollment, though that cost is harder to quantify.

"If students are coming for a specific program, they will still come," said Goldsmith. "For students who were not committed up front and may have several choices, the institution needs to pay special attention."

Ex-Penn State president disputes Freeh report

But she noted: "It’s a challenge for any institution that relies heavily on the reputation of any one program. When there’s trouble in that program, the institution could have a significant branding problem."

Barton said he did not see a risk to the university’s ability to recruit high quality instructors or to its academics winning research grants.

However, he predicted that the scandal could discourage major donations from people who are thinking about their own legacies.

"There’s no way to calculate the untold gifts from potential contributors — especially from baby boomers — who are actively planning their estates. It’s going to be difficult for Penn State to earn the trust of those individuals," he said.

"It is important to know we are entering a new chapter at Penn State and making necessary change," Penn State President Rodney Erickson said in a statement after the announcement of NCAA sanctions.

"We must create a culture in which people are not afraid to speak up, management is not compartmentalized, all are expected to demonstrate the highest ethical standards, and the operating philosophy is open, collegial, and collaborative."

Barton argues that the university should create a comprehensive multiyear program that includes bold initiatives, such as removing most of the Board of Trustees, who the Freeh report noted had failed in their job of oversight.

"I think there should be a national conference on pedophilia that Penn State hosts,” said Barton. "It would say it happened here, it could happen to you."

"Handing the investigation over to Louis Freeh was an extremely smart, savvy first move," said Barton, the crisis management expert.  "But it really should not be the last one. It should be the liftoff to an ongoing series of reviews and disclosures about how do you turn a huge debacle into a better Penn State."

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Gene Puskar / AP

Former Penn State President Graham Spanier walks on the field in 2011 before an NCAA college football game in State College, Pa.

The former president of Pennsylvania State University, Graham Spanier, has written a letter to the university trustees denying he shielded Jerry Sandusky, the child molesting assistant football coach.

Spanier rebuts the claim in the university-sponsored report by Louis Freeh, the former FBI director, that Spanier and other officials enabled Sandusky's crimes to continue and failed to show empathy for the victims. Spanier also says that he himself was the victim of abuse as a child and would never cover up or defend such action. He doesn't specify what kind of abuse he suffered, but he has previously described being beaten by his father; his attorney said Spanier was not referring to sexual abuse.

"It is unfathomable and illogical to think that a respected family sociologist and family therapist," Spanier wrote, "someone who personally experienced massive and persistent abuse as a child, someone who devoted a significant portion of his career to the welfare of children and youth, including service on the boards of four such organizations, two as chair of the board, would have knowingly turned a blind eye to any report of child abuse or predatory sexual acts directed at children. As I have stated in the clearest possible terms, at no time during my presidency did anyone ever report to me that Jerry Sandusky was observed abusing a child or youth or engaged in a sexual act with a child or youth.

"Had I known then what we now know about Jerry Sandusky, had I received any information about a sexual act in the shower or elsewhere, or had I had some basis for a higher level of suspicion about Sandusky, I would have strongly and immediately intervened," Spanier wrote. "Never would I stand by for a moment to allow a child predator to hurt children. I am personally outraged that any such abusive acts could have occurred in or around Penn State and have considerable pain that it could perhaps have been ended had we known more sooner."

ESPN has published the full letter, first reported by The Patriot-News, which is available here.

Spanier's lawyer, Peter Vaira, told the Associated Press on Tuesday that Spanier received regular "disciplinary beatings" by his father, and had to have his nose straightened several times. Vaira said the abuse was never sexual. 

The Freeh report faulted Spanier, citing a long email trail showing he was informed of the 1998 investigation and the 2001 incident.

"By not promptly and fully advising the Board of Trustees about the 1998 and 2001 child sexual abuse allegations against Sandusky and the subsequent Grand Jury investigation of him, Spanier failed his duties as President," the report says.

The report said that "the avoidance of the consequences of bad publicity" was the most significant cause for the failure to protect child victims and report abuse to authorities.

More coverage:

• The Freeh report: What it says about Penn State officials
• Freeh report increases the legal risks for Spanier
• Analysis: Paterno could've been indicted if he'd lived
• Report: Paterno, others hid Sandusky sexual abuse

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Spanier describes the 1998 and 2001 incidents

In his letter to the trustees, Spanier makes several specific rebuttals to the Freeh report.

First, Spanier says he thought that a 1998 investigation of Sandusky was being appropriately handled:

"I was apparently copied on two emails in 1998, the first, from Gary Schultz to Tim Curley on May 6 saying that 'the Public Welfare people will interview the individual Thursday.' The second email, from Schultz to Curley on June 9, says 'They met with Jerry on Monday and concluded that there was no criminal behavior and the matter was closed as an investigation. He was a little emotional and expressed concern as to how this might have adversely affected the child. I think the matter has been appropriately investigated and I hope it is now behind us.' I have no recollection of any conversations on the topic or any other emails from that era sent to me or by me. It is public knowledge that the District Attorney decided there was no crime to pursue. I don’t understand how one could conclude from such evidence 'concealment' of a known child predator."

Then Spanier provides more information about a 2001 incident in which coaching assistant Mike McQueary reported seeing Sandusky nude with a boy in a shower. He says university officials Tim Curley and Gary Schultz assured him that the information was not reported as a sexual incident, a sex act, but  as one that appeared inappropriate, "horsing around" nude in the shower:

"I can assure you that I hadn’t the slightest inkling until reading the Grand Jury presentment that Sandusky was being investigated for more than a single incident in a shower in 2001, something that was described to me only as 'horsing around.'

"I never heard a word about abusive or sexual behavior, nor were there any other details presented that would have led me to think along those lines. McQueary’s name was never mentioned to me, and it is clear that Curley and Schultz had not spoken to him yet when they gave me their initial heads up. I was in fact told that the witness wasn’t sure what he saw, since it was around a corner. Dr. Jonathan Dranov’s Grand Jury and trial testimony appear to corroborate that nothing sexual was reported to him in his meeting with McQueary on the night of the 2001 incident."

Spanier also says that he shared with the trustees what he knew in 2011, when Sandusky was being investigated by a grand jury, but that the university's general counsel kept him mostly in the dark.

Detail on the 2001 incident
Spanier supplemented his letter with details on the information he says he received about the 2001 incident in the shower. Here is his account in full:

Initial Heads Up

More than a decade ago, Tim Curley and Gary Schultz asked to catch me after another meeting to give me a “heads up” about a matter. Looking back at my calendar for what is now presumed to be February, 2001, I surmise that meeting to have been on Monday, February 12, at about 2:30pm, following a scheduled meeting of the President’s Council. It was common that members of the council would catch me individually for brief updates following such meetings.

The meeting lasted perhaps 10-15 minutes. Curley and Schultz shared that they had received a report that a member of the athletic department staff had reported something to Joe Paterno, and that Joe had passed that report on to Tim and Gary. The report was that Jerry Sandusky was seen in an athletic locker room facility showering with one of his Second Mile youth, after a workout, and that they were “horsing around” (or “engaged in horseplay”). It was reported that the staff member was not sure what he saw because it was around a corner and indirect.

I recall asking two questions:

“Are you sure that is how it was described to you, as horsing around”? Both replied “yes.”

“Are you sure that that is all that was reported?” Both replied “yes.”

We then agreed that we were uncomfortable with such a situation, that it was inappropriate, and that we did not want it to happen again. I asked that Tim meet with Sandusky to tell him that he must never again bring youth into the showers. We further agreed that we should inform the Second Mile president that we were we directing Jerry to never do this again and furthermore that we did not wish Second Mile youth to be in our showers.

Notes:

There was no mention of anything abusive, sexual, or criminal.

At no time was it said who had made the report to Joe Paterno. (I never heard Mike McQuery’s name associated with this episode until November 7, 2011, when I read it in a newspaper story.)

The hour of the day was not mentioned.

The specific building and locker room were not mentioned.

The age of the child was not mentioned. I had presumed it was a high school age child under Jerry’s guardianship or sponsorship, since that is all I knew about the Second Mile.

There was no mention of any prior shower incident, and I had no recollection of having heard of a prior incident.

Follow Up

In reviewing my calendar for February, 2001, I note a double entry for Sunday, February 25. I had been out of town for several days and was scheduled to return in time to see a Penn State women’s basketball game at 2pm. My assistant noted on the calendar that I should stop in to see Tim Curley briefly in my way into the game. I have no recollection of that meeting other than that Tim was worried about how he shouldhandle things if he informed Sandusky that we were forbidding him from bringing Second Mile youth into our facilities and then Sandusky disagreed with this directive. I do not recall knowing about any prior incidents, but it is apparent from emails recently released to the media that Tim also indicated that there had been an earlier occasion when Sandusky had showered with a minor. We also now know that I was copied on two emails in 1998 that may have alerted me to that (the first one being a vague reference with no individual named) and the second essentially saying that the matter had been closed. I had absolutely no recollection of that history in 2001 nor do I recall it today. I don’t believe I replied to those emails nor was I briefed verbally.

Tim Curley sent me a follow up email that has recently been shared with the news media. My use of the word “humane” refers specifically and only to my thought that it was humane of Tim to wish to inform Sandusky first and to allow him to accompany Tim to the meeting with the president of the Second Mile. Moreover, it would be humane to offer counseling to Sandusky if he didn’t understand why this was inappropriate and unacceptable to us. My comment that we could be vulnerable for not reporting it further relates specifically and only to Tim’s concern about the possibility that Jerry would not accept our directive and repeat the practice. Were that the outcome of his discussion I would have worried that we did not enlist more help in enforcing such a directive. I suggested that we could visit that question down the road, meaning after Curley informed Sandusky of our directive and learning of his willingness to comply.

A few days after the brief Sunday interaction, I saw Tim Curley and he reported that both of the discussions had taken place, that those discussions had gone well and our directive accepted, and that the matter was closed.

I never heard another word about this from any individual until I learned of the investigation into Sandusky. I was eager to assist the attorney general and was completely honest to the best of my recollection. I had absolutely no idea until midway through my voluntary grand jury testimony that this inquiry was about anything more than the one episode in the shower.

Notes:

I do not recall that I was privy to any follow up discussions between Curley, Schultz, legal counsel, or others. I had five out of town trips that month, my appropriations hearings, THON, a packed calendar with 164 appointments, an average of 100 incoming and 50 outgoing emails a day, and the turmoil of the Black Caucus disruption and the takeover of the student union.

I do not recall being involved in any discussions about DPW or the police, although I now assume that DPW is the “other organization” being referenced by Curley and Schultz in their emails.

Updated at 6:44 p.m. ET: STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - The famed statue of Joe Paterno was taken down from outside the Penn State football stadium Sunday, eliminating a key piece of the iconography surrounding the once-sainted football coach accused of burying child sex abuse allegations against a retired assistant.

Workers lifted the statue off its base and used a forklift to move it into Beaver Stadium as the 100 to 150 students watching chanted, "We are Penn State."

Construction vehicles and police arrived shortly after dawn Sunday, barricading the street and sidewalks near the statue, erecting a chain-link fence then concealing the statue with a blue tarp.

Read the latest on the story on NBCSports: Paterno statue removed

The statue, nearly 7 feet tall and weighing more than 900 pounds, was built in 2001 in honor of Paterno's record-setting 324th Division 1 coaching victory and his "contributions to the university." 

CFT: 'Take (Paterno) statue down or we will,' banner says

The university said it would take down the larger-than-life monument in the face of an investigative report by former FBI Director Louis Freeh that found the late coach, along with three top Penn State administrators, concealed the abuse claims against Jerry Sandusky more than a decade ago in order to shield the university and its football program from negative publicity.

Pat Little / Reuters; Patrick Smith / Getty Images

The site outside Beaver Stadium before and after the statue's removal.

Penn State President Rodney Erickson explained  the decision to remove the statue in a statement that read in part:

With the release of Judge Freeh's Report of the Special Investigative Counsel, we as a community have had to confront a failure of leadership at many levels. The statue of Joe Paterno outside Beaver Stadium has become a lightning rod of controversy and national debate, including the role of big time sports in university life. The Freeh Report has given us a great deal to reflect upon and to consider, including Coach Paterno's legacy.

Throughout Penn State, the two most visible memorials to Coach Paterno are the statue at Beaver Stadium and the Paterno Library. The future of these two landmarks has been the topic of heated debate and many messages have been received in various University offices, including my own. We have heard from numerous segments of the Penn State community and others, many of whom have differing opinions. These are particularly important decisions when considering things that memorialize such a revered figure.

I now believe that, contrary to its original intention, Coach Paterno's statue has become a source of division and an obstacle to healing in our University and beyond. For that reason, I have decided that it is in the best interest of our university and public safety to remove the statue and store it in a secure location. I believe that, were it to remain, the statue will be a recurring wound to the multitude of individuals across the nation and beyond who have been the victims of child abuse.

The family of Paterno said the statue's removal "does not serve the victims" of the abuse scandal. A family statement issued Sunday said the only way to help the victims was  to "uncover the full truth." The family has previously said they do not agree with the conclusions of the Freeh report and planed to commission their own investigation.

Presideent Barack Obama feels the removal of the statue is "the right decision," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

Meanwhile, the National Collegiate Athletic Association said it would announce "corrective and punitive measures" for Penn State on Monday in the aftermath of the child sex abuse scandal. NCAA President Mark Emmert hasn't ruled out the possibility of shutting down the Penn State football program for a year or more in the wake of the scandal, adding that he had "never seen anything as egregious."

Target for critics
The bronze sculpture outside Beaver Stadium has been a rallying point for students and alumni outraged over Paterno's firing four days after Sandusky's Nov. 5 arrest -- and grief-stricken over the Hall of Fame coach's Jan. 22 death at age 85.

But it turned into a target for critics after the Freeh report's stunning allegation of a cover-up by Paterno, ousted President Graham Spanier and two Penn State officials, Athletic Director Tim Curley and Vice President Gary Schultz. Their failure to report Sandusky to child-welfare authorities in 2001 allowed him to continue molesting boys, the report found.

Erickson admitted that the school had made mistakes in its handling of the affair, and said the university had become more aware of the issues of child abuse as a result of the scandal that engulfed the school. 

CFT: Penn State to respond to NCAA, statue issues

Paterno's family, along with attorneys for Spanier, Curley and Schultz, vehemently deny any suggestion they protected a pedophile. Curley and Schultz await trial on charges of failing to report child abuse and lying to a grand jury but maintain their innocence. Spanier hasn't been charged. Sandusky was convicted last month of 45 counts of sexual abuse of 10 boys.

Some newspaper columnists and former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden have said the statue should be taken down, while a small plane pulled a banner over State College reading, "Take the statue down or we will."

But Paterno still has plenty of fans, and Penn State's decision to remove the monument won't sit well with them. One student even vowed to "chain myself to that statue" if there was an attempt to remove it.

Three men claim abuse by Sandusky in '70s or '80s

University officials had called the issue a sensitive one in light of Paterno's enormous contributions to the school over a 61-year coaching career. The Paterno family is well-known in the community for philanthropic efforts, including the millions of dollars they've donated to the university to help build a library and fund endowments and scholarships.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Nabil K. Mark, Abby Drey / AP file

Pilato had put a halo over Paterno's image after the coach's death in January, but said he felt he had to remove it after a report that Paterno and other university officials buried allegations of child sex-abuse against ex-assistant Jerry Sandusky.

A mural of the late former football coach Joe Paterno at a Connecticut middle school will be painted over following the release of a report last week that put blame on Penn State officials in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal. 

Oxford Board of Education Interim Superintendent Dr. John Reed made the decision to remove the painting from the Great Oak Middle School before classes resume, the Connecticut Post reported. 

The report didn't indicate what painting will replace the Paterno mural. 

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The board first discussed removing the painting last year following allegations Paterno and university leaders failed to report the allegations against Sandusky.

"We decided to wait until all the facts were out and the report was complete before we made a decision," Board of Education Chairwoman Paula Guillet told the station.

The Post reported the painting is part of a "Wall of Heroes" throughout the school that also features Albert Einstein, John F. Kennedy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. 

The decision follows a 267-page independent report conducted by former FBI Director Louis Freeh on behalf of the university that found officials did little to nothing when confronted with allegations that assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky had been sexually abusing young boys. 

Report: Penn State president, Paterno concealed facts about Sandusky sex abuse

The report also found Paterno and university leaders concealed Sandusky's activities for over a decade and showed a lack of empathy for his victims.

Officials hid the allegations against Sandusky to protect the school's reputation, according to the report. 

Most of Sandusky's victims were middle-schoolers when the abuse occurred. 

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In State College, Pa., another painting of the late football coach was altered after the release of the Freeh report.

Artist Michael Pilato had created a large mural of Penn State leaders years ago. He added a halo over Paterno’s image after he died Jan. 22. But on Saturday, Pilato removed the halo over Paterno's head.

Sandusky was convicted on 45 counts for the sexual abuse of 10 boys over a 15-year period. He is in jail awaiting sentencing. 

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Nabil K. Mark / AP

The family of the late Penn State football coach Joe Paterno is unhappy with the findings of an investigation into the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.

Lawyers for the family of Joe Paterno say they will do their own investigation of the late Penn State football coach's involvement with the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse case, reiterating that they disagree with a report that concluded Paterno and others withheld information that could have prevented further abuse.

In a statement emailed to NBC News, the family said it was "dismayed" by parts of the report released last week by Louis Freeh, the former FBI director who conducted an investigation for the university in the Sandusky scandal.

The Freeh report concluded that Paterno and other university leaders "repeatedly concealed critical facts" relating to assistant coach Sandusky’s child sex abuse from authorities.

Paterno's family say they will not be issuing any further comment until they have done their own review. 

Below is the family statement:

Following the release of the Grand Jury findings last fall, Joe Paterno called for a thorough, fair and transparent investigation. Like everyone else, Joe was stunned at the charges that were filed against Jerry Sandusky. At the same time, Joe cautioned against a rush to judgment on Penn State and its senior officials and reminded everyone that we owed it to the victims to uncover the full truth.

The announcement of the findings by the Freeh Group is yet another shocking turn of events in this crisis. We are dismayed by, and vehemently disagree with, some of the conclusions and assertions and the process by which they were developed. Mr. Freeh presented his opinions and interpretations as if they were absolute facts. We believe numerous issues in the report, and his commentary, bear further review.

Our interest has been and remains the uncovering of the truth. We have never tried to run from this crisis or shift all responsibility to others. To help prevent this sort of tragedy from happening again at Penn State or any other institution, it is imperative that the full story be told.

After the report was released, we instructed our attorneys and their experts to conduct a comprehensive review of the materials released by the Freeh Group as well as Mr. Freeh's presentation and press conference. We have also asked them to go beyond the report and identify additional information that should be analyzed. And we have asked the Freeh Group to preserve all records, notes and other materials related to the investigation and the presentation of their findings as we expect they will be the subject of great interest in the future.

To those who are convinced that the Freeh report is the last word on this matter, that is absolutely not the case. Since various investigations and legal cases are still pending, it is highly likely that additional critical information will emerge. With that said, we want to take this opportunity to reiterate that Joe Paterno did not shield Jerry Sandusky from any investigation or review. The 1998 incident was fully and independently investigated by law enforcement officials. The Freeh report confirms this. It is also a matter of record that Joe Paterno promptly and fully reported the 2001 incident to his superiors. It can certainly be asserted that Joe Paterno could have done more. He acknowledged this himself last fall. But to claim that he knowingly, intentionally protected a pedophile is false.

The process of reviewing the report and other relevant information is going to be a complicated and time consuming exercise. It took the Freeh Group roughly seven months to conduct more than 400 interviews and review three million documents. We do not expect or intend to duplicate this effort but we are going to be as thorough as reasonably possible. In the meantime, our attorneys have asked that we not make any further comment on this matter until they are ready to provide an update on their progress.

More on Penn State investigation:

Penn State to renovate showers, locker room where Sandusky abused boys

Report finds Penn State president, Paterno concealed facts about Sandusky sex abuse

Sandusky scandal shows danger of larger-than-life boss

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On Saturday, muralist Michael Pilato altered his famous Penn State artwork – by removing a halo painted over the head of former head football coach Joe Paterno – because of revelations about Paterno’s role in the child sexual abuse scandal that has rocked the university.

The mural, which adorns the university bookstore at the corner of Heister Streets and College Avenue in State College, Pa., depicts a group of local luminaries, including Paterno, who was head coach of the Penn State football team for nearly 46 years. Pilato had added the halo after Paterno’s death on Jan. 22.

Pilato and his family have been friends with the Paternos for many years so this decision was a tough one, he said. But after considering what was revealed in last week's Freeh report, Pilato said, he "had no choice."

Former FBI director Louis Freeh released the 267-page report, commissioned by Penn State, into the role of the institution and its employees in the serial sexual abuse of boys by former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.

Penn State to renovate showers in Sandusky case

The report emphasized the roles of the "four most powerful people" at Penn State, including iconic coach Paterno, "who failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade." It said they "concealed Sandusky’s activities from the Board of Trustees, the University community and authorities."

The other three are former Penn State Vice President Gary Schultz and former athletic director Timothy Curley, who both face criminal charges alleging they failed to report the abuse and for perjury in grand jury testimony — and university president Graham Spanier. Spanier was forced out of his position at head of the university, but remains on staff as a tenured professor of sociology.

Pat Little / Reuters

Above, artist Michael Pilato adds a halo over football coach Joe Paterno's head to a mural in January in downtown State College, Pa. Pilato created the mural several years ago. On Saturday, Pilato removed the halo -- the altered mural can be seen below..

Courtesy PILATO MURALS

Expert: Penn State report ups legal risk for former president

"Sue Paterno had been quoted as saying Joe was not a saint. That made this difficult decision easier for me to execute," Pilato told NBC News.

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After removing the halo, Pilato painted a blue ribbon over the chest of the late coach’s image.

"The last time I saw Joe in his home before he died, he said to me, 'I wish there were classes taught on sexual abuse,'" Pilato said. "The blue ribbon signifies awareness of the sexual abuse and knowing where Joe's thoughts were on this, I felt it was appropriate to give him the blue ribbon."

In December, emboldened by the victims in the Penn State scandal, Pilato's 16-year-old daughter, Skye, went public with the story of her own abuse — being raped by two men when she was 12, the local Centre Daily Times reported. The artist has dedicated a recent mural in State College to her and other victims of sexual abuse.

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Pilato removed the image of Jerry Sandusky from the earlier mural after Sandusky's arrest in November, and later replaced him with the image of Dora McQuaid, a Penn State graduate who is an activist on sexual and domestic abuse issues. He plans to have all the handprints of all the victims of Sandusky added to the mural in the near future.

Pilato has not decided what he will do with the image of Spanier, the former Penn State president, on the mural. "In the last two days, people have been throwing eggs on the Spanier section of the mural," adds Pilato. "Maybe they are doing my work for me."

Msnbc.com's Kari Huus contributed to this report.

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STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Penn State plans to renovate the building where Jerry Sandusky sexually molested boys, a university spokesman said Friday.

David La Torre said that Penn State plans to remodel the football shower and locker room area as a direct result of Sandusky's crimes.

The former defensive coordinator was convicted last month of 45 counts of sexual molestation involving 10 boys. Some of the assaults took place in the football showers.

Read the full story on NBC station WGAL here

La Torre said renovation plans to the Lasch Football Building were drawn up shortly after Sandusky's arrest in November. But he said Penn State can't move forward until all legal proceedings in the case are over.

Penn State President Rodney Erickson said there have been discussions about Lasch building renovations between Athletic Director David Joyner and new Penn State football coach Bill O'Brien.

Expert: Freeh report ups legal risk for former Penn State president

The Lasch building was the scene of a 2001 incident in which graduate assistant coach Mike McQueary said he saw Sandusky abuse a boy in the shower.

An internal investigation released on Thursday said that Penn State leaders including late football coach Joe Paterno covered up Sandusky's sexual abuse for years to protect the high-profile football program. 

NBC News station WGAL and Reuters contributed to this report.

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Reuters file

Penn State University President Graham Spanier, left, and Jerry Sandusky attend the Second Mile Celebrity Golf Classic, in State College, Penn. in 1997.

Of four former top Penn State employees accused by an independent investigation of concealing sexual abuse by Jerry Sandusky, one is dead and two are facing charges of perjury and not reporting abuse.

The fourth, former university president Graham Spanier, remains on the Penn State staff and hasn't been charged.

But a report published Thursday on what went wrong at Penn State outlines Spanier's actions and could increase the likelihood that prosecutors will pursue criminal charges against him as well, a legal expert said.

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"Do I think he will face further ramifications?" said Drexel University law professor Dan Filler. "He’s definitely at risk."

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

That lumps Spanier with former Penn State vice president Gary Schultz and former university athletic director Timothy Curley, and former head football coach Joe Paterno, who died in January. Schultz and Curley are accused of failing to report the allegations of sexual abuse by Sandusky, and of committing perjury when questioned by a grand jury.

Penn State report: What it says about Sandusky’s associates

These men "concealed Sandusky’s activities from the Board of Trustees, the University community and authorities," concluded Freeh, who was hired by Penn State to conduct the investigation.

Spanier rejected that accusation.

"Unfortunately, Judge Freeh's conclusion …  that Dr. Spanier was engaged in a course of 'active concealment' is simply not supported by the facts or by the report itself," said a statement Spanier issued Thursday through his attorneys, Peter Vaira and Elizabeth Ainslieon Thursday.

Sandusky, 68, was arrested in November 2011 and found guilty of 45 counts of child sexual abuse. He is in jail awaiting sentencing.

The Freeh report looked into the role of individuals and the institution of Penn state in failing to stop Sandusky. It says Sandusky assaulted boys on university property and 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 statement from Spanier’s lawyers repeated his claim that he was never contacted by law enforcement or other officials about criminal conduct on the part of Sandusky.

"As he told Judge Freeh himself last Friday and has steadfastly maintained, at no time in his 16 years as President of Penn State was Dr. Spanier told of any incident involving Jerry Sandusky that described child abuse, sexual misconduct, or criminality of any nature."

Email conversations documented by the report seem to suggest that Spanier was informed by Shultz about the 1998 investigation of Sandusky, which arose after a mother alleged that the coach sexually assaulted her 11-year-old son in a shower.

The notes reveal little about Spanier’s reaction to the investigation and no record to suggest that he or the others addressed Sandusky about the allegations.

The report documents how, after witnessing Sandusky in sexual activity with a child in the locker room showers on campus in 2001, graduate assistant Mike McQueary reported it to coach Joe Paterno, who passed that information on to Curley and Shultz, who brought it to Spanier.

There is no record of Spanier speaking directly to McQueary.

"(Spanier's) biggest defense is he didn’t hear it from McQueary," said Filler. "He heard it from Curley and Schultz."

The report did not make clear how McQueary's story was spelled out to Spanier, but it says that records show that Curley, Schultz and Spanier devised a plan to tell Sandusky they thought he had a problem, offer him professional help and advise him not to bring children into campus facilities.

In email cited by the report, Spanier agrees with this approach, which he calls "humane and reasonable."

"The only downside for us is if the message isn’t 'heard' and acted on, and we become vulnerable for not having reported it. But that can be assessed down the road," he said in the email.

No one reported the alleged rape of the boy to the police and there is no record suggesting that they attempted to identify the boy or find out if he had been harmed, the report said.

Spanier also did not report the incident to the Board of Trustees at the time, only doing so under pressure after he was called to testify before the grand jury in the Sandusky case, along with Curley and Schultz, the report said.

The report does not accuse Spanier of lying but it does provide fodder for a prosecutor to probe inconsistencies in Spanier’s statements, raising the risks of charges for the former university president, said Filler.

"If prosecutors decide he lied under oath and they can prove it, that's where his risk is," he said. "As with other cases -- like the Clinton case — it’s often not the bad conduct. It’s the lying under oath."

Another possible risk to Spanier, said Filler, is the possibility that Shultz and Curley strike a plea deal in exchange for damning testimony against Spanier.

The report says Spanier resisted independent investigation of Sandusky, "discouraged discussion and dissent" and had "a striking lack of empathy for child abuse victims."

"Spanier just does not go to the board with anything," said Filler. "That may not be criminal, but boy that is ugly for lots of reasons. He has a duty to bring risks to the university to the board, and he doesn’t."

Moreover, Filler said, the comprehensiveness and caliber of the Freeh report — led by former U.S. attorney, FBI director and federal judge — provides investigative legwork for any potential prosecutor.

"The report isn’t evidence," said Filler. "But it makes it easy for a prosecutor to see what there is. And it does change the politics of the decision to prosecute. And (prosecutors) are elected officials, they are sensitive to this."

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Mark Wilson / Getty Images

Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky leaves court in handcuffs after being convicted in his child sex abuse trial on June 22 in Bellefonte, Pa.

The report released Thursday by a special investigative counsel dissects what went wrong at Penn State University when it failed to prevent the serial sexual abuse of young boys by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. Here are some of the findings about the roles played by key figures.

Jerry Sandusky: Defensive football coach at Penn State and founder of the children’s charity The Second Mile.
Sandusky, 68, was arrested in November 2011 and found guilty of 45 counts of child sexual abuse. He is in jail awaiting sentencing.

The report says five of the boys were assaulted by Sandusky on university property. It focuses on two reported incidents:

In May 1998, police investigated allegations that Sandusky showered with an 11-year old boy in the Lasch Building, which houses the football locker rooms on the Penn State campus. Then, in February 2001, a graduate assistant, Mike McQueary, says he witnessed Sandusky involved in sexual activity with a 10- to 12-year-old boy in the shower and told head coach Joe Paterno, who passed on the information to university officials.

The report says that despite an investigation of serious charges involving Sandusky, he was allowed to retire in 1999, "not as a suspected child predator but as a valued member of the Penn State football legacy" with the university's blessing to work with young people through Penn State, "essentially granting him license to bring boys to campus facilities for 'grooming' as targets for his assaults through Nov. 2011."

Mike McQueary: Assistant Penn State football coach.

McQueary was a graduate assistant when he says he saw Jerry Sandusky involved in sexual activity with a boy in a team shower on the Penn state campus on a Friday night in February 2001. McQueary took this information to Paterno, and later spoke to Curley and Shultz about it.

Gene J. Puskar / AP file

Penn State University assistant football coach Mike McQueary

The report notes that "no record of communication indicates that McQueary or Paterno made any effort to determine the identity of the child in the shower or whether the child had been harmed." It says that McQueary, among others, was "obligated to report the 2001 Sandusky incident to the University Police Department for inclusion in Clery Act statistics and for determining whether a timely warning should be issued to the University community. No record exists of such a report."

In court testimony this year, McQueary said he had "no doubt" that Sandusky was having intercourse with the boy.

===

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The report emphasizes the roles of the following four men — what it calls the "four most powerful people" at Penn State — "who failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade." It said they "concealed Sandusky’s activities from the Board of Trustees, the University community and authorities."

Joe Paterno: Former Penn State football coach with oversight of Sandusky.

In November 2011, after the allegations against Sandusky became public, the legendary coach was removed from his position. He died in January.

Scott Audette / Reuters

Former Penn State Coach Joe Paterno

Despite knowledge of the sexual abuse investigation in 1998 and McQueary's 2001 eye witness account of apparent sexual abuse, the report says Paterno and other campus officials "failed to control Sandusky’s access to the University’s facilities and campuses, allowing Sandusky access until Nov. 2011."

After McQueary told Paterno what he saw in February 2001, Paterno told campus officials Curley and Schultz, but not campus police. The report says that in subsequent emails the men discussed various measures, including getting professional help for Sandusky and barring him from bringing children to the campus locker rooms, but that no substantive action was taken. It says that Sandusky engaged in further abuse in campus facilities after that.

"Those assaults may well have been prevented if Spanier, Schultz, Paterno and Curley had taken additional actions to safeguard children on University facilities," it said. 

Timothy Curley: Penn State University athletic director.

Curley is facing criminal charges for allegedly failing to report allegations of child abuse against Sandusky to law enforcement or child protection authorities in 2002 and for allegedly committing perjury during testimony about the allegations to a grand jury in January 2011.

Patrick Smith / Getty Images file

Penn State athletic director Tim Curley

The report includes a series of emails that point to Curley’s role in negotiating a retirement package for Sandusky that was reached in June 1999 after campus investigators finished looking into 1998 sexual assault allegations. The deal included an unusual lump sum payment of $168,000, an agreement for continued collaboration with The Second Mile, and free lifetime use of a campus locker room facility, the report said. Curley also requested the emergency re-hire of Sandusky for the 1999 football season, which was approved.

After McQueary’s 2001 eyewitness account reached him, and a subsequent flurry of email and meetings with Shultz and Spanier, Curley met with Sandusky and told him "we were uncomfortable" about the incident and told Sandusky to stop bringing children to athletic facilities. He also informed the leadership of The Second Mile, after which both parties decided it was a "non-incident," and no further action was taken.

“Without ever speaking to McQueary, Schultz and Curley had already decided that not reporting Sandusky’s conduct to authorities may be an option,” the report says.

Click here to read the full investigative report

Gary Schultz: Penn State vice president for business and finance, now retired.

Schultz is facing charges for allegedly failing to report allegations of child abuse to law enforcement or child protection authorities in 2002 and for allegedly committing perjury during testimony to the Grand Jury in January 2011.

The report reveals that in 1998 Schultz communicated extensively with Curley, Spanier and investigators looking into sex abuse allegations against Sandusky. In notes from one meeting he speculates: "Behavior — at best inappropriate @ worst sexual improprieties" and "Is this opening of Pandora’s box?" and "Other children?"

Patrick Smith / Getty Images

Penn State University Vice President Gary Schultz

After McQueary’s 2001 eyewitness account, Schultz, Spanier and Curley agreed to offer Sandusky help for his apparent problem, and if he refused, to inform child protective services and The Second Mile. In email, Schultz concludes this is the “more humane and upfront way to handle this.”

At a Board of Trustees meeting in September 2001, neither Schultz nor Spanier disclosed the questions swirling around Sandusky. At the same meeting, the board approved a deal structured by Schultz to sell a University property to The Second Mile.

Before a grand jury in January 2011, Schultz testified that he did not recall that much about the details of the 1998 allegations and later said he "was never aware" of an investigation into inappropriate touching in 1998, according to the report.

Schultz told the grand jury that head coach Joe Paterno and Mike McQueary reported the 2001 shower incident to him "in a very general way" but said the "allegations came across as not that serious. … We had no indication a crime had occurred," the report said.

Gene Puskar / AP

Penn State President Graham Spanier

Graham Spanier: Pennsylvania State University President.

The report says that the university president told the special investigative counsel that "he never heard a report from anyone that Sandusky was engaged in any sexual abuse of children" and said he would have been the first to intervene if he had known or suspected it.

But the report lays out a long email trail showing that Spanier was informed of the 1998 investigation, and told of the 2001 account brought forward by McQueary.

"By not promptly and fully advising the Board of Trustees about the 1998 and 2001 child sexual abuse allegations against Sandusky and the subsequent Grand Jury investigation of him, Spanier failed his duties as President," the report says.

The report said that "the avoidance of the consequences of bad publicity" was the most significant cause for the failure to protect child victims and report abuse to authorities.

It also faulted Spanier, describing him as "a President who discouraged discussion and dissent," and faulted "a striking lack of empathy for child abuse victims by the most senior leaders of the University."

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