The Joe Paterno scandal broke in November 2011, when Pennsylvania prosecutors charged longtime Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky with child sexual abuse and it became public that Paterno, the head football coach, had been told a decade earlier about Sandusky assaulting a boy in a team shower and had reported it to his athletic director but not to police. Within four days of Sandusky’s arrest, Penn State’s Board of Trustees fired Paterno for what it called a failure of leadership. He died of lung cancer two months later, at age 85, never charged with a crime but with his reputation permanently split between his coaching record and his handling of what he had been told.1NPR. Remembering Joe Paterno: What Is His Legacy
What Paterno Was Told, and When
The scandal centers on what Paterno knew about Sandusky, and when he knew it. Three separate episodes matter.
The 2001 Shower Incident
On a Friday night in February 2001, graduate assistant Mike McQueary walked into the football building’s shower room and saw Sandusky with a boy he later estimated to be 10 to 12 years old. McQueary testified at Sandusky’s trial that the boy was pressed against the wall with Sandusky behind him, and that he heard skin-on-skin slapping sounds.2ABC News. Jerry Sandusky Trial Hears Key Witness Mike McQueary The next morning McQueary called Paterno and then went to his home to describe what he had seen. According to a 2011 police report, Paterno told McQueary this was the second complaint of that nature he had received about Sandusky.3CNN. Penn State Paterno Sandusky Police Report
Paterno reported the account to athletic director Tim Curley. He did not call police. Testifying before a grand jury, he explained the day’s delay in even telling Curley by saying he didn’t want to interfere with anyone’s weekend.3CNN. Penn State Paterno Sandusky Police Report No one from the university contacted law enforcement.
The 1998 Campus Investigation
Three years earlier, in 1998, a mother had reported that Sandusky gave her 10-year-old son a “naked hug” in a campus shower. Campus police and the state child welfare agency investigated but took no action. During that investigation Curley sent an email saying he had “touched base with Coach,” a reference widely understood to mean Paterno.3CNN. Penn State Paterno Sandusky Police Report The later Freeh Report concluded that Paterno was made aware of the 1998 investigation, followed it closely, and failed to take any action.4NBC News. Report Finds Penn State President, Paterno Concealed Facts About Sandusky Paterno told the grand jury in 2011 that he had “no inkling” of Sandusky’s conduct before 2001.
A 1976 Allegation Surfaces
In depositions unsealed in July 2016 in an insurance case, a man identified as “John Doe 150” testified that in 1976, when he was 14 and attending a football camp, Sandusky sexually assaulted him in a shower. He said he sought out Paterno the next day. Asked whether Paterno responded by saying he didn’t want to hear about it because he had a football season to worry about, the man answered, “Specifically, yes.” A lawyer for the Paterno family called the accusation one that “defies all logic.”5ABC News. Testimony Documents Allege Joe Paterno Knew of Child Abuse
The Firing
Sandusky was arrested and charged on November 5, 2011. That same day, the Board of Trustees learned for the first time about Paterno’s 2002 grand jury testimony describing what McQueary had told him. Over four days the Board held emergency conference calls. On the morning of November 9, Paterno announced he would retire at the end of the season. The Board decided that wasn’t enough. That evening trustees voted unanimously to fire Paterno and remove university president Graham Spanier, effective immediately.6Penn State University. Report to Board of Trustees Concerning November 9 Decisions
The Board’s finding was that while Paterno had fulfilled his minimum legal duty by reporting McQueary’s account to a superior, he had failed by not following up and not calling police. Trustees called it a failure of leadership. Paterno was told by phone at about 10 p.m. He hung up before the Board could finish.6Penn State University. Report to Board of Trustees Concerning November 9 Decisions
Speaking to reporters outside his home that night, Paterno said, “Right now, I’m not the coach. And I’ve got to get used to that. After 61 years, I’ve got to get used to it.” Thousands of students poured into the streets near campus, some chanting “We want Joe!” A lamppost was toppled and a news van damaged.7Press Democrat. Penn State Trustees Fire Coach Paterno, President Spanier
The Freeh Report
Penn State commissioned former FBI Director Louis Freeh to investigate. His report, released July 12, 2012, concluded that Paterno, Spanier, Curley, and Schultz “failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade” and “repeatedly concealed critical facts relating to Sandusky’s child abuse” to avoid bad publicity. Freeh described the officials’ disregard for victims as “callous and shocking.” He found that despite knowledge of the 1998 police inquiry, they took no action to limit Sandusky’s access to campus, and instead allowed him to retire in 1999 as a “valued member of the Penn State football legacy,” which preserved his access to potential victims.8NFL.com. Freeh Report: Joe Paterno Concealed Jerry Sandusky Abuse
The Family’s Rebuttal
On February 10, 2013, the Paterno family released a 237-page counter-report reviewed by former U.S. Attorney General Dick Thornburgh, who called the Freeh investigation “fundamentally flawed,” “incomplete,” and “speculative.”9Politico. Paterno Family Report Assails Freeh Report The family argued that Freeh’s team failed to interview Curley and Schultz, and that the case against Paterno rested on a handful of emails, none written by him. An assistant typed and printed his emails because he didn’t use the technology himself.10NBC News. Paterno Family Challenges Freeh Report The family asserted that Paterno never asked or told anyone not to investigate Sandusky and never asked administrators not to report the 2001 allegation, and that he followed university protocol by passing information up the chain. Freeh stood by his conclusions.
What Happened to Sandusky and the Other Officials
In June 2012, Sandusky was convicted of 45 counts of child sexual abuse involving 10 boys.11PBS NewsHour. Jerry Sandusky Resentenced to 30 to 60 Years12CBS News. Jerry Sandusky Resentenced to 30 to 60 Years on Child Sexual Abuse Charges13Centre County Historical Society. Sexual Abuse Scandal14WJAC-TV. A Look at the Financial Toll of the Jerry Sandusky Scandal on Penn State
Three senior Penn State officials were criminally charged for their handling of the abuse reports. Curley and former vice president Gary Schultz pleaded guilty to misdemeanor child endangerment. Curley received 7 to 23 months with 3 months in jail; Schultz received 6 to 23 months with 2 months in jail. Spanier was convicted of misdemeanor child endangerment in 2017, acquitted of conspiracy, and sentenced to 4 to 12 months with 2 months in jail.15NPR. 3 Penn State Officials Sentenced to Jail Time for Failure to Report Sandusky A federal magistrate judge vacated Spanier’s conviction in 2019, but the Third Circuit reinstated it on December 1, 2020.16Courthouse News Service. Panel Reinstates Conviction of Ex-Penn State President in Sandusky Case Paterno was never charged.
NCAA Sanctions and Their Reversal
On July 23, 2012, days after the Freeh Report, the NCAA hit Penn State with a $60 million fine, a four-year postseason ban, scholarship cuts, five years of probation, and the vacation of all football wins from 1998 through 2011. That last penalty erased 112 victories, 111 of them Paterno’s, and stripped him of his standing as the winningest coach in major college football.17NCAA. Penn State Sanctions
Pennsylvania State Senator Jake Corman sued in January 2013, challenging the NCAA’s authority and arguing the $60 million should be spent within Pennsylvania on child abuse prevention.18The New York Times. How One Legislator Helped Penn State Escape NCAA’s Harsh Penalties19WPSU. NCAA Restores Penn State Football Wins20Inside Higher Ed. NCAA Restores Penn State’s Wins Under Paterno21ESPN. Joe Paterno 111 Wins Were Vacated Restored
The Statue, the Library, and the 2020 Settlement
On July 22, 2012, ten days after the Freeh Report, Penn State removed the bronze statue of Paterno that had stood outside Beaver Stadium. President Rod Erickson said it had “become a source of division and an obstacle to healing” and that leaving it would be “a recurring wound to the multitude of individuals across the nation and beyond who have been the victims of child abuse.” The family objected, saying the removal was not the way to serve Sandusky’s victims and that the university should have afforded due process.22WFSU. A Recurring Wound: Penn State Removes Joe Paterno Statue As of 2024, Penn State’s position was that there are “no plans for additional honors or a reinstallation of the statue.”23SI.com. Penn State Trustees Hear Resolution to Name Beaver Stadium Field After Joe Paterno The Pattee-Paterno Library kept its name; Erickson said it remained a tribute to Joe and Sue Paterno’s commitment to academics.24Inside Higher Ed. $60M Fine, 4-Year Bowl Ban Among Penalties; University Removes Paterno Statue
On February 21, 2020, Penn State and the Paterno family announced a resolution of all outstanding disputes, including a 2014 lawsuit filed by Paterno’s son Jay. Penn State agreed to cover certain family expenses; the family agreed to drop all claims and to stop supporting public or private efforts to revisit the past, including matters related to the Freeh Report.25Penn State University. Board of Trustees and Paterno Family Statements Board chair Mark Dambly said the university takes great pride in Paterno’s many contributions. Sue Paterno acknowledged that “a mutual resolution seldom satisfies everyone” but said the family wanted to move forward.26CNN. Penn State Lawsuit Resolution Paterno Family As part of the settlement, the Board stated it had never endorsed Freeh’s opinions about Paterno.
His Death and Divided Legacy
Paterno died on January 22, 2012, just over two months after being fired. He had been diagnosed with lung cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy.1NPR. Remembering Joe Paterno: What Is His Legacy In one of his final public statements he said he should have done more about what he was told in 2001. In an interview before his death he maintained he had “no inkling” that Sandusky was “a sexual deviant” before that year.3CNN. Penn State Paterno Sandusky Police Report
Supporters point to his 409 coaching wins, an 80 percent player graduation rate, and millions of dollars donated to the library system. Critics see a man whose institutional loyalty overrode his obligation to vulnerable children. What is not in dispute is that Sandusky’s abuse went unreported for years, that people in the best position to stop it did not, and that among them was the most powerful figure on the Penn State campus.