Jerry Sandusky won’t be going anywhere for a while. In a ruling passed down Tuesday, 68 year-old Sandusky was sentenced to at least 30 years in prison. Sandusky, the former assistant coach for Penn State football, was convicted in June on charges of sexual abuse. The charges included 45 counts of child sexual abuse against 10 victims, and spanned a 15-year period, according to CNN.
Although Sandusky faced a possible maximum of 400 years, the results of the sentencing set the maximum at 60 years. He is not eligible for parole for 30 years, but he will be given credit for 112 days of time served, CNN reports.
“I’m not going to sentence you to centuries,” Judge Cleland said to Sandusky, according to a report by The New York Times. “It makes no sense for a 68-year-old man. This sentence will put you in prison for the rest of your life.”
Despite what is effectively a life sentence for Sandusky, he is still asserting his innocence. “I did not do these alleged disgusting acts,” he said Tuesday, NYTimes reports. Sandusky’s attorneys will attempt an appeal, according to CNN.
The NYTimes report notes that, with this ruling, the Penn State abuse scandal is finally coming to a close. The case against Sandusky has just about wrapped. Joe Paterno, the former head football coach at Penn State, has passed away. The university president, Graham B. Spanier, has been dismissed. The university has promised to pay victims who are seeking money.
But for the victims, this is far from over. Although the university wants to “privately, expeditiously and fairly” settle with Sandusky’s victims according to a report by The Huffington Post, some feel that it will not be enough.
“It’s important they understand before we get into serious discussions about money, that there are other, noneconomic issues. We need apologies. We need changes in policy. This isn’t just about money,” Ben Andreozzi, an attorney for one of the victims, told HuffPost.
With Sandusky’s attorneys promising an appeal, even the legal side of this may not be over. “This case looks like it’s over as of today,” Kristen Houser of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape told HuffPost. “But you never know where things will take a turn.”
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http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/10/sports/ncaafootball/penn-state-sandusk…