The Washington Post is reporting that U.S. Senators Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Bob Casey (D-PA) have decided to rescind their proposal to have Paterno receive the Medal of Freedom for his years of service to Penn State.
During his tenure as Penn State's head coach, Paterno insisted that his players maintain high academic standards and was revered for his fatherly firmness on the field.
But that all came crashing down this week when he was fired for not doing enough to protect young boys who were being molested by his former linebacker coach, Jerry Sandusky.
"In light of the recent events in State College, we are rescinding our support for the nomination of Joe Paterno for the Presidential Medal of Freedom,” Sens. Casey and Toomey said in a statement.
“We hope the proper authorities will move forward with their investigation without delay. Penn State is an important institution in our commonwealth. We should turn our attention to the victims of these atrocious crimes and ensure they get the help they need. Our hearts and prayers go out to them and their families.”
The announcement came at the same time that the U.S. Department of Education announced plans to open an investigation into the case which they suspect may be in violation of the Clery Act. Named for Jeanne Clery, a Lehigh University coed who was raped and murdered in her dorm room in 1986, the Clery Act requires colleges and universities to not only disclose reported crimes, but also requires schools in some cases to issue a warning to the campus community if a crime constitutes a threat to the campus.
“If these allegations of sexual abuse [at Penn State] are true then this is a horrible tragedy for those young boys," said Education Secretary Arne Duncan. "If it turns out that some people at the school knew of the abuse and did nothing or covered it up, that makes it even worse. Schools and school officials have a legal and moral responsibility to protect children and young people from violence and abuse.”
The crimes that brought down Paterno began back in 1998 when a mother called local police to report that Sandusky was showering naked with her son. The police confronted Sandusky, who promised not to commit the crime again, and the case was closed.
A year later, Sandusky retired from Penn State and started a non-profit for troubled kids called The Second Mile, and was permitted to use college facilities. In 2000, a janitor saw him commit a sex act on a boy at Penn State and reported it to his supervisor where the case once again died.
Two years later, a 28-year-old graduate assistant named Mike McQueary saw Sandusky having sex with a boy in the shower. McQueary told his father, who reported it to Paterno - in person - the next day. Paterno promptly reported the incident to the athletic director and a senior vice president. These officials later claimed to have believed the two were only "horsing around" and did nothing about it other than forbid Sandusky from using school facilities.
In 2005 and 2006 new allegations came in from parents of Second Mile kids, which led to the convening of a grand jury in 2009. This resulted in an indictment on 40 charges relating to the sexual abuse of eight boys over a 15 year period. On Nov. 5, 2011, Sandusky was arraigned and released on $100,000 bail. If convicted, he could serve up to life in prison.
Although the students at Penn State rioted over the firing of Paterno, a new Rasmussen poll found that 57 percent give the school poor marks for the handling of the Sandusky case.
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