Judge Denies Sandusky's Appeal For New Trial On Child Sex Abuse Charges
HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- A judge ruled Wednesday that Jerry Sandusky will not get a new trial on child sex abuse charges.
Centre County Judge John Foradora denied the former Penn State assistant football coach's appeal, meaning Sandusky's original sentence stands.
The judge's decision is a big blow for Sandusky and his legal team, who argued he did not receive adequate representation from his lawyers during his initial 2012 trial.
"This decision is not the end of our fight by any means," said Al Lindsay, Sandusky's attorney. "Now we need to move along to the next chapter and what the next chapter is an appeal through the Pennsylvania Appellate Court."
Lindsay believes Sandusky should never have been charged in the first place.
"I know what the public thinks and the news media thinks, but I know what I think. I think he's an innocent man, a man who should never have been charged with these things," Lindsay said.
Sandusky, 73, is serving a 30- to 60-year state prison sentence after being convicted of 45 counts of sexual abuse involving 10 boys.
Sandusky's attorneys introduced a Post Conviction Relief Act request more than one year ago.
Initially, the hearings were held by Judge John Cleland, who also presided over the original trial, but he recused himself late last year because of the conflict of interest.
State prosecutors argued Sandusky's original trial was fair and that he didn't deserve a new one.
Despite this major setback, Lindsay says he's going to continue to fight for Sandusky's freedom.
"We're in it for as long as it takes," he said. "We're in a scrap and we're going to keep scrapping until we get what we need. And we think ultimately we'll prevail because what happened here is just too wrong. Just too wrong."