Expert Says Comments By Sandusky's Attorney May Hurt Client

by KYW Harrisburg bureau chief Tony Romeo

HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- A prominent Pennsylvania defense attorney is again scratching his head over the latest comments from the lawyer representing accused child molester Jerry Sandusky (see previous story).

The Patriot-News of Harrisburg reports that Sandusky's attorney has acknowledged that he may have to eventually discuss a possible plea bargain with his client.

VIEW: Complete Coverage Of Penn State Sex Abuse Scandal

The attorney general's office won't comment on that, but renowned defense attorney Bill Costopoulos will.

Costopoulos -– whose successful appeal of high school principal Jay Smith's murder conviction became a TV mini-series -– says he has been surprised from day one by the public announcements made by Sandusky's attorney.

"Defense lawyers do not announce publicly that they may eventually urge a plea deal, when in the next breath they're maintaining the client's innocence," Costopoulos said today.

And he says these comments by Sandusky's lawyer, and the decision to put Sandusky on national television discussing the case (see related story), are "off the planet."

Meanwhile, Fox News reports that the editor of the Harrisburg paper is standing by the paper's story even though Sandusky's lawyer disputes its accuracy, saying he was responding to a "what-if" question when he said he might have to consider possible alternatives.

In:
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• Jerry Sandusky
• Child Sex Abuse