From the NEW YORK TIMES:
On Saturday, March 2, 2002, according to Pennsylvania prosecutors, a Penn State University graduate student went to visit Joe Paterno, the university’s football coach. The student had a horrific story to tell: the night before, the graduate student had witnessed one of Paterno’s former coaches sexually assaulting a 10-year-old boy in the football facility’s showers…
Earlier Sunday, Paterno issued a statement insisting that the graduate assistant had not told him of the extent of the sexual assault that he said he witnessed, only that he had seen something inappropriate involving Sandusky and the child.
“As Coach Sandusky was retired from our coaching staff at the time, I referred the matter to university administrators,” Paterno said in the statement…
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EDITOR: The above gives us some relief. From what he says, it appears that Paterno acted quickly and responsibly. One has to wonder how high up the accusations were conveyed in the Univeristy hiearchy and when the police were informed, if at all. Certainly accusations of criminal abuse of youngsters is a matter to be passed on to the authorities.
This story will have LONG tentacles…if the allegations are true that this kind of conduct was taking place while Sandusky was a member of Paterno’s staff, it might help explain why Paterno did not attend Sandusky’s retirement party after 30 years as a member of the staff.
What did Paterno REALLY know, and WHEN did he know it??? Did Paterno keep the ‘cover-up’ as an ‘ace-in-the-hole’ when he had some down years, and a segment of the administration was waffling on extending his contract???? Questions, questions, questions!!!
In any event the ‘purity’ image has been seriuosly tarnished.