PHILLY.COM: A long-awaited Superior Court ruling that landed last month did more than just dismiss the most serious charges against three former Penn State administrators accused of covering up child sex attacks by Jerry Sandusky.
It also handed Attorney General Kathleen Kane what could be her clearest opportunity yet to steer the outcome of a case that helped shape her election and tenure…
With her law license suspended, and her own criminal trial pending, can she even have a say in the matter? And if Kane is powerless, doesn’t the appeal decision fall logically to her first deputy, Bruce Beemer, a career prosecutor who helped build the case against the Penn State leaders before she took office?
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EDITOR: We have long felt that the case against the Penn State officials was a manifestation of the zeitgeist of the moment. Tom Corbett and company wanted people to blame, starting with Joe Paterno and extending to the Penn State officials. Given the fuzziness of the account of what took place, the worst the executives could be criticized for was a lapse of judgment. The charges should never have been brought.
This case should have had little do with Penn State, except it happened to be the site where an alledged crime was committed. Corbett and his successor had ample opportunity to investigate and prosecute Sandusky for years before and at the time. If anyone, they must bear the responsibility.
