12/03/24
May 06, 2016
Joe Paterno (and Penn State) may have known about the sexual abuse of children by Jerry Sandusky as far back as 1976.:
The line in question states that one of Penn State's insurers has claimed "in 1976, a child allegedly reported to PSU's Head Coach Joseph Paterno that he (the child) was sexually molested by Sandusky."
Sporting religion can be such a strange beast. Hard to know where to start here. Strange stories continue to emerge from State College.
Meanwhile, Paterno loyalists continue to raise their voices in defense of the once magical Happy Valley Vatican at every turn, which is not helpful or productive.
With vacated wins having been restored, if this new timeline is investigated and holds up, the win total could change once again, this time more dramatically, and national championships might be out the window as well. Not that that matters to victims.
PSU seemed to have done many things right as an athletic department and as a community in the wake of the Paterno downfall. If the new allegations stand, do the investigators keep pushing to see if the problems go back even farther, and does the NCAA come back and retroactively re-sanction the football program?
posted by beaverboard at 10:04 AM on May 06, 2016
Although you can't see the irony cast in bronze any longer, it's still available in muslin.
posted by beaverboard at 10:15 AM on May 06, 2016
He had multiple chances to protect children from heinous abuse by one of his own coaches.
That sure seems to be the case. And if so, beyond all of the outrage and anger toward Paterno, I'm extremely curious about what could have been going through his head for all of those years. Was it just misguided loyalty to a man that he considered a friend, or even an extended family member? Was the guy that fucking spectacular of an assistant football coach that Paterno cynically felt that his value to PSU outweighed the harm he was doing to the anonymous children he was molesting?
Well behind the obvious horrific consequences to the victims of Sandusky's crimes, one of the greatest tragedies in this case is that Paterno went tits up before he could ever take ownership of his actions, and maybe even explain to the world what the fuck he was thinking.
posted by tahoemoj at 01:13 PM on May 06, 2016
I don't understand the first time Paterno covered up Sandusky's crimes.
I might understand the second, because Paterno was complicit at that point. He had his own reputation to worry about if his prior non-action came to light.
But why didn't he fire him and never let him use Penn State athletic facilities or profit from his association with the school?
posted by rcade at 01:44 PM on May 06, 2016
Maybe Paterno thought the first time was a lie (or a mistake, or misunderstanding, or something similar).
Then, every time after that, he realized that it WASN'T a lie/mistake/whatever, and he's then forced to cover his own ass for not stopping it the first time (and every time after that).
It's one of the greatest falls from grace in American history. The man was pretty much revered for his character, and now...
posted by grum@work at 04:19 PM on May 06, 2016
Looks like this is now widening and deepening further, with more people coming forward. It could easily become worse than round one was in 2011. A search phrase such as "Penn State coaches knew" or "Paterno told victim to forget" does not yield encouraging results. It's looking more long standing, enabled, and institutionalized by the hour.
At this moment, the NCAA deciding to reinstate Paterno's vacated wins two years ago looks highly ill-advised and indefensible. They may end up having to head firmly in the other direction.
There's a chance there will be no justice served in this latest round if there is ample cause to bring charges. Paterno is dead, Sandusky is already in jail for what amounts to life, and prior charges have been dropped against PSU President Spanier and AD Curley. That leaves other members of the coaching staffs, the athletic department, and the university administration if they're going to go after people. Several decades worth of them.
posted by beaverboard at 08:48 AM on May 07, 2016
Then, every time after that, he realized that it WASN'T a lie/mistake/whatever, and he's then forced to cover his own ass for not stopping it the first time (and every time after that).
I could see that happening. It shows another reason someone in power must act on information about the possible abuse of a child -- to not act is a time bomb waiting to blow up your career. I hope at least that is a legacy of Paterno's fall. He will never be remembered with honor outside of Penn State faithful, and even among them I expect there's a sizable group outraged by his role in this.
As I say that people must always report these crimes when they become aware of them, there's a complicating factor: Mandatory reporters such as health professionals and school officials often face retaliation when they do the right thing. My wife wrote that link for Daily Kos as part of a series on the treatment of abused children in the U.S. family court system.
We're a long way from fixing this mess and protecting children.
posted by rcade at 11:59 AM on May 07, 2016
Okay, maybe it was as far back as 1971!
posted by grum@work at 05:10 PM on May 07, 2016
From grum's link:
He has lost friends. One of them, a former pro player who used to take him to Super Bowls, told him he didn't want him hanging around his football friends anymore, and humiliated him at a party. "He taped something to my ass and called it Sandusky's hole," he said. "It's absolutely horrible what he did to me. He's hurt me about as much as I've been hurt."
What the hell?!
posted by bender at 07:52 PM on May 07, 2016
Defenders of Paterno should give it up already. He was not the man the college football world thought he was. He had multiple chances to protect children from heinous abuse by one of his own coaches. He chose to help cover it up and kept a loathsome predator in his employ -- even letting the man use Penn State facilities to run youth camps.
I am enjoying the irony that this came to light because Penn State is trying to recoup $60 million in settlements to Sandusky's victims by making their insurer pay it. Their attempt to save some money may drag more of the truth out yet about their own cover up.