BELLEFONTE, Pa. (WTAJ) — Former Penn State assistant coach, Jerry Sandusky, is being re-sentenced. Follow along for updates.
3:55 p.m.
As Sandusky was leaving the courthouse, we asked him if he has anything to say to his supporters, to which he responded “Only that I care about them so much.”
2:53 p.m.
Sandusky will be getting credit for the nearly 7.5 years that he’s already served, meaning his sentence will end when it was originally set for.
2:37 p.m.
Sandusky has received the same sentence of 30-60 years. The judge said the crime is a legacy of trauma on the victims. Sandusky spoke to the judge proclaiming his innocence, he got emotional while thanking his supporters, saying he loves them. Prosecutors said there’s no reason to shorten his sentence.
Sandusky’s lawyer, Al Lindsey says he believes he will get a new trial and will be exonerated. “My hope is he will be able to see it,” Lindsey said.
12:55 p.m.
Sandusky’s sentencing is scheduled for 1 p.m. and should begin momentarily.
11:15 a.m.
Jerry Sandusky has arrived in court for his re-sentencing. When asked if he maintains his innocence by WTAJ reporter Evan Hinkley, Sandusky mumbled “absolutely.”
10:00 a.m.
Jerry Sandusky is being re-sentenced at the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte Friday. The re-sentencing is scheduled to take place at 1:00 p.m.
Background Information
Sandusky, a former Penn State assistant football coach, was convicted in 2012 of the sexual abuse of 10 boys, including attacks on campus. Victims testified he subjected them to abuse that ranged from grooming to violent sexual attacks. He was sentenced to 30 to 60 years, but that term was overturned by Superior Court in February.
The 75-year-old Sandusky filed a petition in October that repeats many of the arguments he’s made in state courts about why his 45-count child sexual abuse conviction should be overturned.
His claims of a tainted trial in 2012 include a prosecutor’s reference to jurors that Sandusky didn’t testify, that his former lawyers didn’t have enough time to prepare, and that the legal team made several mistakes.
Sandusky’s November 2011 arrest shook Penn State, prompting the firing of Hall of Fame head coach Joe Paterno and the ousting of then-university President Graham Spanier. The university subsequently paid more than $100 million to people who said they had been abused by Sandusky.
Spanier and two other senior administrators, Tim Curley and Gary Schultz, were charged over their response to reports about Sandusky. Curley and Schultz pleaded guilty to child endangerment in 2017 for failing to notify authorities in 2001 of a complaint about Sandusky and a boy in a team shower.
Spanier went to trial and was convicted of misdemeanor child endangerment, but a federal judge in April threw it out, ruling he had been improperly charged under a 2007 law for actions that occurred in 2001.
