Update from MSNBC:
Karl Rominger said Sandusky was under individual guard at the county jail, known as suicide watch, and was apart from the general prison population, Reuters reported.
It was not clear if Sandusky had acted in a way that threatened his own life, or if the move was standard procedure in such a high-profile case.
Rominger reiterated that the former defensive coach for Penn State football will appeal the verdict, a process that can happen when Sandusky is sentenced in 90 days or so.
Make no mistake, this college football story is a not a football story. It’s a million times bigger than that. The Harrisburg Patriot-News’ Sara Ganim won a Pulitzer for reporting on this, and she’s a news reporter, not a sports reporter.
Jerry Sandusky was convicted tonight on 45 of 48 counts of child sex abuse. Even his own adopted son accused of him of doing so. Per sentencing guidelines, he’ll get at least 60 years, and faces a maximum of 442 years in prison. He’ll find out his specific fate in 90 days, but this much is clear- he’ll die in prison and rot in hell.
JUSTICE has prevailed!
But what about the Penn State program?
Right now, it’s hard to decide what’s harder to find, positive things to say about Joe Amendola’s defense, his public persona or the prospects for Penn State. There is no more “alleged” or “suspected,” Sandusky is a full-fledged pedophile, and a bonafide sick and twisted sex offender.
He also was once the right hand man and future successor to Joe Paterno; meaning all the JoePa worshippers have to take a step back now and realize how tarnished the Paterno legacy truly is as well. Given how revered Paterno is in State College and the state of Pennsylvania, both PSU and the Commonwealth receive a big black eye tonight in Bellefonte.
And there’s much more to come.
There’s a federal investigation underway of PSU. The NCAA is also doing so. I hope the Big Ten follows suit! All this could fall under the “lack of institutional control” clause/designation in the NCAA rule book, and you know what that could mean- heavy sanctions! Very hard to say as the NCAA is extremely arbitrary and capricious in its rulings. And this beyond unprecedented. I wouldn’t think the death penalty is likely, but given how deep the cover up goes, it’s a distinct possibility. We know PSU is guilty of covering up Sandusky, but what lengths did they go to do so? Only further investigations will let us realize how deep the rabbit hole goes. And when we do, meaning Gary Schulz and Graham Spanier, it could be grounds for the death penalty in what will not be so Happy Valley.
Would that be fair to Bill O’Brien and the current regime? Absolutely not, but again this is unprecedented.
One thing is certain after tonight’s verdict: Penn State will be a college community forever linked with Jerry Sandusky and child rape in the manner that Kent State is eternally connected to the shootings of 1970.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, an official Google News site generating millions of unique visitors. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Chicago Tribune.com, Fox Sports, MSN, Walter Football and Yardbarker
A Fulbright scholar and MBA, Banks has appeared on live radio all over the world; and he’s a member of the Football Writers Association of America, U.S. Basketball Writers Association, and Society of Professional Journalists. The President of the United States follows him on Twitter (@Paul_M_BanksTSB) You should too