Well, Saturday November 5th, my sister's 22nd birthday and the day of "The Game of the Century", Jerry Sandusky is arrested for molesting young boys (at times in the Penn State football locker room). From there, Penn State begins its largest scandal its history. So far, Joe Pa, the head coach of the Penn St. football program for over 40 years, and the president of Penn St., Graham Spanier, have been fired.
There are two opinions on this scandal. First, Joe Pa knew and had a moral and legal obligation to report Sandusky's abuse to the police and because he did not he should be fired. Second, there is the opinion that Joe Pa reported it to the university, and the board should have let him step down at the end of the season, which he was planning on doing.
After watching this train wreck, I feel compelled to give my opinion. Now, I have not read the entire grand jury report; mainly because I hate reading legalese. However, I have read the timeline from the Huffington Post (
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/09/penn-state-scandal-timeline-jerry-sandusky_n_1084204.html), and I have had discussions with people who have read the grand jury report so I will reference them when and if it is necessary.
My first reaction to reading the timeline is this particular part, "1998 – Victim 6 is taken into the locker rooms and showers when he is 11 years old. When Victim 6 is dropped off at home, his hair is wet from showering with Sandusky. His mother reports the incident to the university police, who investigate.
Detective Ronald Schreffler testifies that he and State College Police Department Detective Ralph Ralston, with the consent of the mother of Victim 6, eavesdrop on two conversations the mother of Victim 6 has with Sandusky. Sandusky says he has showered with other boys and Victim 6's mother tries to make Sandusky promise never to shower with a boy again but he will not. At the end of the second conversation, after Sandusky is told he cannot see Victim 6 anymore, Schreffler testifies Sandusky says, "I understand. I was wrong. I wish I could get forgiveness. I know I won't get it from you. I wish I were dead."
Jerry Lauro, an investigator with the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, testifies he and Schreffler interviewed Sandusky, and that Sandusky admits showering naked with Victim 6, admits to hugging Victim 6 while in the shower and admits that it was wrong.
The case is closed after then-Centre County District Attorney Ray Gricar decides there will be no criminal charge."
So let's get this straight, before the janitor AND the graduate assistant ever witness Sandusky molesting boys the police have already investigated him for child molestation, and did NOTHING!?!?!? Obviously, the university police just let it go because even if they couldn't have indicted him with Victim's 6 information, they could have put Sandusky under surveillance. I mean, it wouldn't have take long for them to find him with another little boy! Instead, they let this continue. Was Sandusky such a figure on the Penn St. campus that he was able to get away with whatever? And it has taken 13 years for him to finally be indicted.
OK, moving right along. Let's go to the graduate assistant, who was 28 when he witnessed Sandusky sodomizing Victim 2. Ok, you're 28 years old and you witness this and the first thing you do is call you Dad? And your Dad advises you to tell your direct superior instead of calling the police? Ok, so I'll give you the benefit of doubt that you were totally freaked out by what you saw, and the first person you call is your father for advise. Ok, now Dad, at this point has an amazing moment to teach his son, and what does he do? He tells his son to report it to his superior coach, Joe Pa? I'm sorry, I just don't understand this. Why wouldn't you tell your son to report it to the police immediately and to Joe Pa? This isn't a football moment that needs to be reported to a coach and only a coach. This is something that needs to be reported to the POLICE!!!! That's my major problem with Mr. Grad Assistant. In addition, they have fired Joe Pa and just put Mr. Grad Assistant on administrative leave? Can you say, "DOUBLE STANDARD!"?
Next up, Joe Pa's involvement with Mr. Grad Student's report. Here is the part I did read from the grand jury report, lol.
The graduate assistant and his father decided that the graduate assistant had to promptly report what he had seen to Coach Joe Paterno ("Paterno"), head football coach of Penn State. The next morning, a Saturday, the graduate assistant telephoned Paterno and went to Paterno's home, where he reported what he had seen.
Joseph V. Paterno testified to receiving the graduate assistant's report at his home on a Saturday morning. Paterno testified that the graduate assistant was very upset. Paterno called Tim Curley ("Curley"), Penn State Athletic Director and Paterno's immediate superior, to his house the very next day, a Sunday, and reported to him that the graduate assistant had seen Jerry Sandusky in the Lasch Building showers fondling or doing something of a sexual nature to a young boy.
It goes on to say that the graduate assistant was called into a meeting with Curley and Senior VP for Finance and Business, Gary Schultz, and that Paterno was not even at the meeting, which to me makes sense because he did not witness Sandusky himself.
Ok, so Joe Pa's failure to report it to the police is obvious here. It is a complete failure on his part, but I have to wonder because of his age and the culture of time he grew up in maybe he thought he was doing the correct thing. This is NOT to excuse the failure to report; it's just a perspective that we may want to consider. Think about it. He is 84 years old; born in 1926. The culture of how inappropriate things were handled has changed DRASTICALLY over his lifetime. Maybe he was confused on what to do in 2002. In 2002 he was 75 years old. I mean, both my grandmothers were still with it when they were 75, but I doubt that they would have understood how times had changed. I say this because I've heard one of my grandmothers make completely inappropriate comments about things, but it was honestly because she just didn't know any better.
In addition to him maybe just not knowing how to handle it appropriately, he probably thought that if he did report it the university would find a way to fire him because he was the one who hired Sandusky. Maybe Joe Pa really just wanted to coach football, and was afraid of that being taken away. Of course, at this point it has been taken away and his reputation destroyed forever. I guess I'm just having a hard time reconciling his image of integrity with this obvious failure. I really don't think he thought about it maliciously; I truly think he just didn't know how to handle it in the appropriate way. Do they require all state officials/staff to know the laws of reporting sexual abuse? And if so, how often do they update those people on how the laws have changed? Again, none of this is to EXCUSE the obvious failure to report. It's just an perspective.
Moving along, Curley, Schultz and Spanier. Yea, they are completely not credible, which the grand jury reported. The fact that Spanier has a background in sociology and marriage and family counseling revolts me so much I think I would spit on the man. At the VERY least, Mr. Grad Assistant & Joe Pa have backgrounds in football not MARRIAGE AND FAMILY COUNSELING!?!?!? How do you with a clear conscious hear that "Jerry Sandusky in the football building locker area in the shower [] with a younger child and that they were horsing around in the shower" and not think that something is WRONG!?!??! And want to report that to the police to prevent more children being hurt and put into counseling??? I think all of these men are getting exactly what they deserve in this situation.
Finally, none of my opinions here are meant to diminish the true point of this scandal, which is that children were hurt. We must remember them, and pray for them. But we must also pray for the Penn State community. Those who had nothing to do with this, and just want their school's integrity to be restored. To the players of the Penn State football team who have been affected deeply by this train wreck by having a man they thought was of the highest integrity fall from grace in such a manner. I feel like everyone that is emotionally attached to Penn State tradition is a victim of Sandusky now, not only the children who were directly affected. I pray that Penn State recovers from this scandal as soon as possible, and ushers in a new era of class and integrity. With that said, I'll post a nice little video from a friend of mine who is Penn State alumni.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXwiU0BFcpU&feature=share
Also, be watching for Rudder in the Red Zone! She'll have her opinions on this as well! ;D
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