Juror in Sandusky Case Confident in Decision

Following the guilty verdict in the sexual-abuse case of Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, one man on the jury, Joshua Harper, says he knows he made the right decision. Harper, a graduate of Penn State, told the New York Times that even as the jury read all 45 guilty verdicts, Sandusky's face never moved. Now in jail, Sandusky will face a prison board, where officials will determine whether he is a "violent sexual predator" and house him accordingly. 

"He knew it was true," Harper, a high school chemistry teacher here, said as his 2-year-old son and his 4- and 5-year-old daughters played on the floor of their home Saturday morning. "It made me feel confident that we made the right decision."

For two weeks, Harper, a graduate of Penn State and a juror in Sandusky's trial, heard in disturbing detail how one of his alma mater's most famous graduates had preyed on and molested 10 boys as he was simultaneously building a charity and a reputation as a pillar of a tight-knit community where football and family were highly valued.

On Friday, Sandusky, 68, spent the first night of what is expected to be the rest of his life behind bars. He will be sentenced within 90 days, his fate rigidly mapped out and only at the mercy of the state's justice system.

In the meantime, Sandusky will be examined by the state Sexual Offenders Assessment Board, which will determine whether he is a violent sexual predator. He will very likely be isolated from other prisoners for his protection until Judge John Cleland reviews the reports and settles on a sentence.

Read more at the New York Times.

Like The Root on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

 

Tweet