Accuser Number Four Testimony
By: Mallory Lane
Updated: June 13, 2012
BELLEFONTE, CENTRE COUNTY - The first alleged victim to testify said the abuse he experienced began in 1997, when he was thirteen years old.
The man, known as "Victim 4" in the Grand Jury report, recalled when Sandusky met him, he would take him to football games to make him feel comfortable. More specifically, the man said Sandusky maneuvered him on the ground at locations on the Penn State University Park campus and sexually touched him.
Testimony showed Sandusky called the acts "horsing around" and the meetings became more and more physical. The man says Sandusky put his hand on his leg every time he rode in a car.
Accuser #4 testified Sandusky took him to two post season bowl games (Outback and Alamo) and made the man feel more like a "girlfriend". Testimony also showed Sandusky sent "creepy love letters," to Accuser #4 as well. The man spoke in graphic detail about Sandusky's actions following intercourse.
Accuser #4 said he never went to the police or to school superiors because he'd "lose all the good things in his life." The man said his relationship with Sandusky ended in 2002, when he stopped returning Sandusky's calls, which in turn made Sandusky mad because he would not longer speak to him.
Mid-way through the presentation of evidence and testimony, one juror had to be excused because "she felt like she was going to be sick", according to court staff.
Accuser #4 says Sandusky created an agreement between him and the boy which would provide him with money if he stayed and performed well at the Second Mile. "I can't pretend about my feelings, but that I always care," said one note. "Jer, became attuned to accuser and always will," said another letter.
Earlier in the day, Sandusky, 68, walked into court dressed in a gray suit alongside his defense attorneys, Joe Amendola and Karl Rominger. Members of the Sandusky family were also present including his wife, Dottie and son, Matt. Sandusky arrived around 8AM.
Attorneys for the prosecution included Joseph McGettigan and Frank Fina.
Also, in observance were attorneys representing several alleged victims, investigators from the Freeh Group and prosecuting attorneys handling the Tim Curley/Gary Schultz perjury case.
Sandusky's child abuse trial is expected to last three weeks. He's accused of sexually abusing ten boys, now men over a fifteen-year period. Prosecutors say the most recent abuse happened in 2008.
Senior Judge John Cleland began the proceedings by offering his recommendations to the jury. Cleland said the jury is "a cross-section of the citizens of Centre County and represent the conscious of this community," as they will be the individuals who will decide Sandusky's fate.
Cleland reiterated that no juror should be sequestered and no juror should communicate about the case. He says he trusts the jury to be fair, listen to all the testimony, and see all the evidence before concluding a verdict.
McGettigan gave his opening statement showing pictures of the eight known alleged victims and explaining the stories of each accuser. He called Sandusky a "child sexual predator," describing him as a person who set up the Second Mile organization to prey on boys. McGettigan reminded the jurors that it's natural for abuse victims not to report their attacks until far after the abuse because of fear and humiliation.
Before McGettigan's statements, Dottie Sandusky was excused from the room along with another family member for unknown reasons.
In his opening statement, McGettigan told the jury one accuser is a Penn State graduate, two are recent high school graduates, six had no fathers in their lives, three never knew their fathers, and three were in foster care. McGettigan said the accusers will not remember all the specifics of the affairs, because the abuse happened over many years.
McGettigan explained to the jury Sandusky had been investigated four individual times and called him a child sexual predator.
McGettigan says both John McQueary and Mike McQueary will be called to testify in the case along with former Penn State Police Chief, Ronald Shreffler. Marc McCann, a former Second Mile employee, will also testify about a peculiar contract Sandusky had with an accuser.
A recess was taken around 10:30AM Monday morning, and court resumed a half hour later.
Joe Amendola painted a different version of the Sandusky case. He claimed the government tried multiple times to find evidence about Sandusky abusing kids. He said, the government had a hard time putting the case together, and according to some of the accusers, began harassing the men to get information from them.
He says he'll expose why no one apparently called police in regards to Accuser #2. Amendola claims Mike McQueary, the Commonwealth's star witness "assumed he saw abuse," in a Penn State football building in February 2001. Amendola says he'll corroborate this from a family friend, Jonathan Dranov, who will testify that McQueary never stated to him after the alleged incident that he specifically witnessed sex.
Amendola claims six of the eight accusers have filed civil lawsuits against the Second Mile founder.
The judge says witnesses will be sequestered in the case. Prosecutors say Accuser #1 will testify Tuesday.
The man, known as "Victim 4" in the Grand Jury report, recalled when Sandusky met him, he would take him to football games to make him feel comfortable. More specifically, the man said Sandusky maneuvered him on the ground at locations on the Penn State University Park campus and sexually touched him.
Testimony showed Sandusky called the acts "horsing around" and the meetings became more and more physical. The man says Sandusky put his hand on his leg every time he rode in a car.
Accuser #4 testified Sandusky took him to two post season bowl games (Outback and Alamo) and made the man feel more like a "girlfriend". Testimony also showed Sandusky sent "creepy love letters," to Accuser #4 as well. The man spoke in graphic detail about Sandusky's actions following intercourse.
Accuser #4 said he never went to the police or to school superiors because he'd "lose all the good things in his life." The man said his relationship with Sandusky ended in 2002, when he stopped returning Sandusky's calls, which in turn made Sandusky mad because he would not longer speak to him.
Mid-way through the presentation of evidence and testimony, one juror had to be excused because "she felt like she was going to be sick", according to court staff.
Accuser #4 says Sandusky created an agreement between him and the boy which would provide him with money if he stayed and performed well at the Second Mile. "I can't pretend about my feelings, but that I always care," said one note. "Jer, became attuned to accuser and always will," said another letter.
Earlier in the day, Sandusky, 68, walked into court dressed in a gray suit alongside his defense attorneys, Joe Amendola and Karl Rominger. Members of the Sandusky family were also present including his wife, Dottie and son, Matt. Sandusky arrived around 8AM.
Attorneys for the prosecution included Joseph McGettigan and Frank Fina.
Also, in observance were attorneys representing several alleged victims, investigators from the Freeh Group and prosecuting attorneys handling the Tim Curley/Gary Schultz perjury case.
Sandusky's child abuse trial is expected to last three weeks. He's accused of sexually abusing ten boys, now men over a fifteen-year period. Prosecutors say the most recent abuse happened in 2008.
Senior Judge John Cleland began the proceedings by offering his recommendations to the jury. Cleland said the jury is "a cross-section of the citizens of Centre County and represent the conscious of this community," as they will be the individuals who will decide Sandusky's fate.
Cleland reiterated that no juror should be sequestered and no juror should communicate about the case. He says he trusts the jury to be fair, listen to all the testimony, and see all the evidence before concluding a verdict.
McGettigan gave his opening statement showing pictures of the eight known alleged victims and explaining the stories of each accuser. He called Sandusky a "child sexual predator," describing him as a person who set up the Second Mile organization to prey on boys. McGettigan reminded the jurors that it's natural for abuse victims not to report their attacks until far after the abuse because of fear and humiliation.
Before McGettigan's statements, Dottie Sandusky was excused from the room along with another family member for unknown reasons.
In his opening statement, McGettigan told the jury one accuser is a Penn State graduate, two are recent high school graduates, six had no fathers in their lives, three never knew their fathers, and three were in foster care. McGettigan said the accusers will not remember all the specifics of the affairs, because the abuse happened over many years.
McGettigan explained to the jury Sandusky had been investigated four individual times and called him a child sexual predator.
McGettigan says both John McQueary and Mike McQueary will be called to testify in the case along with former Penn State Police Chief, Ronald Shreffler. Marc McCann, a former Second Mile employee, will also testify about a peculiar contract Sandusky had with an accuser.
A recess was taken around 10:30AM Monday morning, and court resumed a half hour later.
Joe Amendola painted a different version of the Sandusky case. He claimed the government tried multiple times to find evidence about Sandusky abusing kids. He said, the government had a hard time putting the case together, and according to some of the accusers, began harassing the men to get information from them.
He says he'll expose why no one apparently called police in regards to Accuser #2. Amendola claims Mike McQueary, the Commonwealth's star witness "assumed he saw abuse," in a Penn State football building in February 2001. Amendola says he'll corroborate this from a family friend, Jonathan Dranov, who will testify that McQueary never stated to him after the alleged incident that he specifically witnessed sex.
Amendola claims six of the eight accusers have filed civil lawsuits against the Second Mile founder.
The judge says witnesses will be sequestered in the case. Prosecutors say Accuser #1 will testify Tuesday.
