EmpireWF
Giants in the Super Bowl
What a dirty, dirty program.
http://assets.espn.go.com/pdf/2012/0712/psupressrelease.pdf -- The actual report
http://content.usatoday.com/communi...be-of-sandusky-case-at-9-am-et/1#.T_7QiStYtV0 -- USA Today
Penn State's independent probe into the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal found "the total disregard for the safety and
welfare of Sandusky's child victims by the most senior leaders at Penn State."
The report specifically criticizes the late head football coach Joe Paterno for not taking action when alerted to allegations of misconduct by Sandusky at university facilities.
"At the very least, Mr. Paterno could have alerted the entire football staff, in order to prevent Sandusky from bringing another child into the Lasch Building," the report charges.
http://assets.espn.go.com/pdf/2012/0712/psupressrelease.pdf -- The actual report
http://content.usatoday.com/communi...be-of-sandusky-case-at-9-am-et/1#.T_7QiStYtV0 -- USA Today
Update at 9:08 a.m. ET: "The most powerful men at Penn State failed to take any steps for 14 years to protect the children who Sandusky victimized,'' the investigation concluded.
It cited former Penn State University President Graham Spanier, former vice president Gary Schultz, former head football coach Joe Paterno and Athletic Director Tim Curley, now on leave, as never demonstrating "through actions or words, any concern for the safety and well-being of Sandusky's victims until after Sandusky's arrest."
The probe was conducted by former FBI director Louis Freeh.
A key excerpt from the report, according to Freeh:
The evidence shows that these four men also knew about a 1998 criminal investigation of Sandusky relating to suspected sexual misconduct with a young boy in a Penn State football locker room shower. Again, they showed no concern about that victim. The evidence shows that Mr. Paterno was made aware of the 1998 investigation of Sandusky, followed it closely, but failed to take any action, even though Sandusky had been a key member of his coaching staff for almost 30 years, and had an office just steps away from Mr. Paterno's. At the very least, Mr. Paterno could have alerted the entire football staff, in order to prevent Sandusky from bringing another child into the Lasch Building. Messrs. Spanier, Schultz, Paterno and Curley also failed to alert the Board of Trustees about the 1998 investigation or take any further action against Mr. Sandusky. None of them even spoke to Sandusky about his conduct. In short, nothing was done and Sandusky was allowed to continue with impunity.
Update at 9:17 a.m. ET: A "critical written correspondence'' uncovered earlier this year, investigators said, contained evidence of a proposed plan to to report to law enforcement authorities a 2001 incident involving Sandusky and a young boy in a university shower room that was witnessed by football assistant Michael McQueary.
"After Mr. Curley consulted with Mr. Paterno, however, they changed the plan and decided not to make a report to the Authorities,'' the report said. "Their failure to protect the…child victim, or make attempts to identify him, created a dangerous situation for other unknown, unsuspecting young boys who were lured to the Penn State campus and football games by Sandusky and victimized repeatedly by him.
"Further,'' the report said, "they exposed this child to additional harm by alerting Sandusky, who was the only one who knew the child's identity, about what McQueary saw in the shower on the night of February 9, 2001.
Update at 9:19 a.m. ET: Citing witness statements and other evidence, the university officials acted "in order to avoid the consequences of bad publicity.''
"The most powerful leaders at Penn State University –Spanier, Schultz, Paterno and Curley – repeatedly concealed critical facts relating to Sandusky's child abuse from the authorities, the Board of Trustees, Penn State community, and the public at large. Although concern to treat the child abuser humanely was expressly stated, no such sentiments were ever expressed by them for Sandusky's victims.''
Update at 9:23 a.m. ET: The University issued this statement in response to the Freeh Report:
Today with the report released by Judge Louis Freeh, the Penn State Board of Trustees delivered on the commitment we made last November when we engaged Judge Freeh to conduct an independent investigation into the University's actions regarding former Penn State employee, Jerry Sandusky, and the handling of allegations of the child abuse crimes of which he has since been found guilty.
Judge Freeh and his team conducted a rigorous eight-month investigation into all aspects of the University's actions to determine where breakdowns occurred and what changes should be made for the future. We, like many others, have eagerly anticipated Judge Freeh's Report of the findings of his investigation.
His 267-page report has just been released at http://www.TheFreehReportonPSU.com/ and we are currently reviewing his findings and recommendations. We expect a comprehensive analysis of our policies, procedures and controls related to identifying and reporting crimes and misconduct, including failures or gaps that may have allowed alleged misconduct to go undetected or unreported. We will provide our initial response later today.
We want to ensure we are giving the report careful scrutiny and consideration before making any announcements or recommendations. We are convening an internal team comprising the Board of Trustees, University administration and our legal counsel to begin analyzing the report and digesting Judge Freeh's findings.
As we anticipate the review and approval process will take some time, our initial response and immediate next steps will be presented at 3:30 p.m. at the Dayton/Taylor Conference Room at the Hilton Scranton & Conference Center.
These top-line reactions will provide an overview of our process for developing and implementing a plan once we have studied the report and have a better understanding of what it means and how we can implement findings to strengthen Penn State's role as a leading academic institution and ensure that what occurred will never be allowed to happen again.
