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| Jerry Sandusky gets 30 to 60 years for child sex abuse - NBCNews.com Posted: 09 Oct 2012 08:23 AM PDT Former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky, who was convicted of 45 counts of child sex abuse, was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison. NBC's John Yang reports. By M. Alex Johnson and Kimberly Kaplan, NBC News New in this version: Comments from judge, Sandusky, victims, attorneys and Penn State Updated at 11:17 a.m. ET: BELLEFONTE, Pa. — Former Penn State University assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison Tuesday for abusing 10 boys he met over 15 years through his charity for troubled children. Sandusky — who was defensive coordinator and for many years the presumed heir-apparent to legendary Penn State football coach Joe Paterno — could have faced as long as 400 years for his convictions on 45 counts of child sexual abuse. But McKean County Common Pleas Court Judge John Cleland, who was brought in to hear the trial after all of Centre County's judges recused themselves, told Sandusky that at age 68, he would be in prison "for the rest of your life." "The crime is not only what you did to their bodies but to their psyches and their souls and the assault to the well-being of the larger community in which we all live," Cleland said. Sandusky's lead attorney, Joe Amendola, told reporters outside court that he would file an appeal within 10 days, saying he hadn't had enough time to prepare an adequate defense. Four of Sandusky's victims and the mother of a fifth addressed the court, some of them speaking tearfully to Sandusky. They told of how they had looked up at Sandusky as a mentor, only to have him betray their trust. "You were the person in my life who was supposed to be a role model, teach honor, respect and accountability, and instead you did terrible things that screwed up my life," said one of the victims, whom NBC News isn't identifying. "You had the chance to plead guilty and spare us the testimony," he said. "Rather than take the accountability, you decided to try to attack us as if we had done something wrong." Another said: "I have tried to think of the words to describe how Jerry Sandusky has impacted my life. There are no words adequate to express the pain and misery he has inflicted in the past, present and future. Lead prosecutor Joseph McGettigan applauded the victims' courage to "speak truthfully" and condemned Jerry Sandusky for his unwillingness to accept responsibility. "He promised to be my friend and mentor. Then came the ultimate betrayal and deeds. He humiliated me beyond description." For his part, Sandusky — as he did in a surprise audio statement Monday night on the Penn State student radio station — insisted that "I didn't do these alleged disgusting acts." Saying he had been advised against speaking at length, Sandusky told Cleland that "as I began to relive everything, I remember my feelings. So many people were hurt, and my eyes filled with tears. It was a horrible time in life to witness, to listen to, be a part of." Sandusky said he had "hope in my heart for a brighter day, not knowing when that day will come." "Many moments I have spent looking for a purpose," he said. "Maybe it will help others — some vulnerable children who may have been abused may not be as a result of all the publicity — but I'm not sure about it. I would hope that it would happen. "I would cherish the opportunity to be a little candle for others as my life goes on as they have been a huge light to me." After the hearing, Senior Deputy Attorney General Joseph McGettigan, who prosecuted the case for the state, called Sandusky's comments "banal self-delusion completely untethered from reality." "It was, in short, ridiculous," he said. Sandusky alleges massive conspiracy Jerry Sandusky spoke out from jail on the eve of his sentencing. NBC's Michael Isikoff reports. Sandusky's statement echoed many of the ideas — some of them word for word — that he broached in his surprise statement Monday night, in which he blamed a widespread conspiracy among police, university administrators and the media for his conviction. After the hearing, Amendola alluded to that theory, alleging that there was "an undercurrent" in some parts of state government to bring down Penn State because of the power Paterno had amassed in 46 years as head football coach. "Folks, my understanding is for years opponents had ongoing battles with the state Legislature over funding," Amendola said. "Penn State always held itself over and above" other state institutions, which rankled some officials, he said. But in sentencing Sandusky on Tuesday, Cleland called that theory "unbelievable." Related: Full statement from Jerry Sandusky Related: Audio of Sandusky's statement on Penn State student station ComRadio In a statement, Penn State President Rodney Erickson said: "Our thoughts today, as they have been for the last year, go out to the victims of Jerry Sandusky's abuse. While today's sentence cannot erase what has happened, hopefully it will provide comfort to those affected by these horrible events and help them continue down the road to recovery." The statement reflected how deeply the scandal rocked Penn State and Centre County. Paterno, who was a revered figure representing integrity in college football, was fired Nov. 9 amid allegations that he didn't properly report concerns about Sandusky to authorities. He died in January at age 85. University President Graham Spanier resigned in November. Athletic Director Tim Curley is on administrative leave, and Senior Vice President Gary Schultz retired. Curley and Schultz face separate trials on charges that they lied to a grand jury about what they knew. Watch US News videos on NBCNews.com Penn State's storied football program, meanwhile, was fined $60 million by the NCAA and was stripped of all victories back to 1998. More content from NBCNews.com: |
| Pakistani Rights Activist, 14, Shot by Taliban - ABC News Posted: 09 Oct 2012 09:06 AM PDT Sometimes, defiance has rosy cheeks. In an attack drawing widespread condemnation, a lone Taliban gunman today approached a crowded school bus in Pakistan's once-volatile Swat region and opened fire. His target: A 14-year-old girl who'd campaigned against the Taliban for the right to go to school. Television footage showed Malala Yousafzai lying on a stretcher and being airlifted to a military hospital in Peshawar. The gunman approached the bus and asked whether anyone could identify Malala, according to local police. When one of her schoolmates singled out the teen, the gunman shot her twice, including once in the head. He also shot the girl who identified Malala before fleeing. Malala is in serious condition, while the other girl's condition is unknown. A Taliban spokesman has claimed responsibility, referring to her campaign for the right to go to school an "obscenity. "This was a new chapter of obscenity, and we have to finish this chapter," Taliban spokesman Ahsanullah Ahsan said in a statement sent to The Associated Press. "We have carried out this attack." The Pakistani Taliban are an offshoot of the insurgency movement in Afghanistan that operates along the lawless tribal belt that straddles the Afghan-Pakistan border. They share the same ideology as their Afghan counterparts, but focus their attacks mainly on pro-Western targets inside Pakistan. Malala's courageous and public stance against the Taliban has earned her widespread acclaim, including being nominated last year for the International Children's Peace Prize. "This was a shocking act of violence against a 14-year girl who has bravely been fighting for her right to education," Amnesty International said in a statement. "This attack highlights the extremely dangerous climate human rights activists face in north-western Pakistan, where particularly female activists live under constant threats from the Taliban and other militant groups." Malala's rise to prominence began in 2009, when she wrote a diary for BBC Urdu under a pseudonym chronicling the oppression she and other girls at her school faced at the hands of the Taliban. At the time, the Taliban had ordered the closure of all girls schools in the region. Her father, who ran a private school, was forced to comply, leaving Malala and her friends with nowhere to study. In all, 50,000 girls were forced out of school in a matter of days. In one blog post titled "Do not wear colourful dresses," Malala wrote about not wearing school uniforms, to avoid being detected by the Taliban. "My friend came to me and said, 'For God's sake, answer me honestly, is our school going to be attacked by the Taleban [sic]?' During the morning assembly we were told not to wear colourful clothes as the Taleban would object to it." Taliban militants first began flooding into Swat in 2007, forcing men to grow beards, prohibiting women from going to bazaars, and whipping and executing anyone accused of so-called immoral crimes. Later, as the Pakistani military undertook an offensive to root out the Taliban from Swat valley -- a picturesque area 100 miles from the capital known for its lush green fields and waterfalls -- The New York times produced a two-part documentary chronicling her exile, and later, the family's return to what's left of their home. Responding to today's attack, Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf said in a statement: "We have to fight the mindset that is involved in this. We have to condemn it. "Malala is like my daughter, and yours too. If that mindset prevails, then whose daughter would be safe?" |
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