Jerry Sandusky Found Guilty On 45 Of 48 Counts
BELLEFONTE (KDKA) -- A jury in Centre County found Jerry Sandusky guilty on 45 of 48 counts in a child sex abuse case Friday night.
As a result of the conviction, his bond was revoked and he was led away in handcuffs from the courthouse.
Sandusky and his wife, Dottie, walked hand in hand into the Centre County Courthouse after the jury reached a verdict. Attorney General Linda Kelly also showed up to hear the verdict.
Sandusky faced 48 counts of child sexual abuse after becoming involved with 10 alleged victims – two of which remain unknown to prosecutors.
In the case of unknown Victim 2, the victim identified by Mike McQueary, Sandusky was found not guilty of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, but guilty of indecent assault, unlawful contact with minors and endangering the welfare of a child with regard to victim.
Defense attorney Joe Amendola gave the reaction of the Sandusky family.
"The Sandusky family is very disappointed obviously by the verdict of the jury, but we respect their verdict," he said.
"You may recall, for those of you who have been with this case from the beginning, that we said that we had a tidal wave of public opinion against Jerry Sandusky and the charges filed against him, that he had been determined to be guilty by the public and the media from the very outset of the charges and that we had an uphill battle. I used the analogy that we were attempting to climb Mt. Everest from the bottom of the mount. Well, obviously we didn't make it.
"We always felt that Jerry's fairest shake would come from a Centre County jury and we still believe that. The jury obviously believed the Commonwealth's evidence."
The jury found Sandusky guilty on all the counts related to Victim 8, a boy who has yet to be identified.
Attorney General Kelly expressed gratitude.
"These men and women along with many other agents, troopers, investigators, attorneys, and other staff of the Attorney General's Office of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania State Police have worked tirelessly for the last few years to bring these charges to light, to bring this case to court and to see this day that this defendant, a serial child predator who committed horrific acts upon his victims causing lifelong and life changing consequences for all of them, has been held accountable for his crimes."
The trial, which began nearly two weeks ago, included testimony from Mike McQueary, a graduate assistant back in 2001 when he allegedly saw Sandusky in the shower with a young boy.
On Friday, the jury listened again to Mike McQueary's account of an encounter in the shower: "I saw in the mirror coach Sandusky behind a boy – his back right up against his front. The boy's hands were up against the wall… in the closest proximity. I was extremely alarmed, extremely flustered."
Jurors also heard for a second time testimony from Dr. Jonathan Dranov, a family friend of the McQuearys, who recalled what Mike McQueary told him about what he witnessed in the shower.
Jurors who started deliberations Thursday afternoon, also had to consider testimony from Dr. Elliot Atkins, a psychologist hired by the defense who said that statements included in letters written to alleged victims by Sandusky were a sign that he suffered from histrionic personality disorder.
However, a psychiatrist for the prosecution, who interviewed Sandusky for two to three hours, saw no signs that Sandusky was suffering from any type of personality disorder.
The defense called more than two dozen character witnesses who included former colleagues, Second Mile participants and athletes whom Sandusky coached during his time at Penn State.
The jury did not hear from Matt Sandusky, who revealed that he was prepared to testify against his adoptive father, alleging that he had been abused by Jerry Sandusky as well.
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