Penn State Trustees Say NCAA Settlement May Be In Works
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Two alumni-elected trustees said Monday they have learned Penn State has proposed new settlement terms with the NCAA in a lawsuit related to the university's handling of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal, and they want the board chairman to tell them the purported details.
Trustees Anthony Lubrano and Al Lord released an email they sent to board chairman Keith Masser that said any such discussions should be shared with them and all other trustees. Masser replied they were making incorrect "suppositions" and that public airing of any possible litigation settlement could damage Penn State.
"We do not know its terms but are naturally skeptical of a proposal designed by only those trustees complicit in the travesties of 2011, 2012 and 2013," Lubrano and Lord wrote. "As chair and vice chair during these periods, you should be particularly mindful of the real and perceived conflict potential your leadership decisions have."
Masser responded that the board has a legal subcommittee that handles such legal matters.
"With respect specifically to the Corman v. NCAA litigation, you have previously been informed that any proposed settlement would be brought to the board for its approval," Masser said, in a statement released to reporters. The NCAA declined comment.
The NCAA and Penn State are co-defendants in a pending state court case brought by two high-ranking elected officials in Pennsylvania regarding the 2012 consent decree that imposed unprecedented penalties on the university.
The lawsuit by Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman and state Treasurer Rob McCord began as an attempt to enforce a state law requiring the consent decree's $60 million fine be spent entirely within Pennsylvania, but it is now focused on the legality of the consent decree. Trial is scheduled for next month.
A spokesman for McCord declined comment on settlement discussions but said he would welcome a deal that brings a fair resolution for all involved. Corman issued a statement saying he has not agreed to any settlement or proposed resolution and was preparing for trial.
Lubrano on Monday also released an email he sent a week ago to Masser and other trustees about the purported settlement offer.
Lubrano said in that email that the board was not likely to approve any deal that does not completely void the consent decree or any deal that "suggests the NCAA had the authority to act."
Lubrano said he was concerned that the Penn State board may be asked to vote on the matter when the trustees meet Friday in State College.
"Given the secrecy of this to this point, nothing would surprise me," Lubrano said.
The NCAA and Penn State signed a consent decree shortly after Sandusky's criminal conviction in 2012 that imposed a four-year bowl ban, reduced football scholarships, required the school to pay $60 million to fund anti-child-abuse measures and invalidated 112 wins from the later years of longtime head coach Joe Paterno.
A report commissioned by Penn State concluded Paterno and other high-ranking school administrators concealed key facts about Sandusky to avoid bad publicity, a finding that remains hotly disputed by many Penn State alumni and fans.
The NCAA has said it was willing to keep the fine money within Pennsylvania, and has reinstated the football scholarships. In September, the NCAA announced Penn State could resume post-season play, and it won the Pinstripe Bowl last month.
Sandusky, convicted of sexual abuse of 10 boys, is serving a 30- to 60-year state prison sentence.
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