Sandusky’s Child Abuse Covered Up By Officials? Email Exchange Raises Questions.

Sandusky's Child Abuse Covered Up By Officials? Email Exchange Raises Questions.

Football assistant, Mike McQueary, had witnessed Jerry Sandusky, a convicted child molester, abusing a boy in a Penn State locker room shower just a few weeks ago. He told Coach Joe Paterno. He told vice president Gary Schultz and athletic director Tim Curley.

According to a bombshell report by CNN, Schultz plotted out a course of action, citing an email exchange that's been uncovered in the school's independent investigation by former FBI chief Louis Freeh. The report could be released as early as next month.

According to CNN in an email dated Feb. 26, 2001, Schultz wrote to Curley about a three-part plan that included talking "with the subject asap regarding the future appropriate use of the University facility," … "contacting the chair of the charitable organization" and "contacting the Department of Welfare."
Except that Curley sent an email to Schultz and school president Graham Spanier on Feb. 27, 2001, that changed everything.

"After giving it more thought and talking it over with Joe yesterday, I am uncomfortable with what we agreed were the next steps. I am having trouble with going to everyone but the person involved. I would be more comfortable meeting with the person and tell them about the information we received and tell them we are aware of the first situation," Curley's email said, according to CNN.

It is not clear why Curley suggested that Sandusky wouldn't be contacted when Schultz's email told Curley to "talk with the subject asap." But the bottom line is that child welfare services was never contacted. And Sandusky, convicted earlier this month on 45 counts of molestation, continued to stalk and abuse the area's disadvantaged boys for seven more years.

The email is devastating on multiple levels, perhaps most for Paterno, who won more games than any other major college football coach, but died at age 85 in January of lung cancer.
According to Curley's email, Paterno participated more than he ever admitted, including likely talking Curley — and thus the others — out of the plan to turn Sandusky over to authorities.

It is now perfectly reasonable to assume that Joe Paterno protected Jerry Sandusky, who had been a Penn State assistant coach from 1969 until retiring in 1999. Sandusky went right along with his business of bringing kids to the sidelines during games, of showering with boys in the locker room, and of sitting in the press/luxury box area of home games. Sandusky used the program's allure like a lollipop to draw kids into his van.

Posted by Andre Monohan on Monday July 02 2012, 3:34 AM EST. Ref: Reuters. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0