Police: Penn State asst. didn’t tell us of abuse

STATE COLLEGE, PA. (AP) - Penn State police and their counterparts in State College said they had no record of a former graduate assistant reporting a sexual assault by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky on a 10-year-old boy in a campus shower, a detail that runs counter to claims made in an email to former teammates.

The police response to Mike McQueary’s claim that he reported the alleged assault came shortly after a lawyer said Wednesday that he had a client who would testify that he was sexually abused by Sandusky, who is accused of abusing eight boys, some on campus, over 15 years.

“I am appalled by the fact that Mr. Sandusky has elected to re-victimize these young men at a time when they should be healing,” Harrisburg attorney Ben Andreozzi said in a statement released by his office. “He fully intends to testify that he was severely sexually assaulted by Mr. Sandusky.”

The client is not the same boy McQueary told a grand jury he saw being sexually assaulted by Sandusky in a shower on university property in 2002.

McQueary, who is now an assistant coach but has been placed on administrative leave, wrote in the email given to The Associated Press that he had “discussions with police and with the official at the university in charge of police” about what he saw. In the email, McQueary did not specify whether he spoke to campus or State College police.

State College borough police Chief Tom King said McQueary didn’t make a report to his department. Penn State spokeswoman Annemarie Mountz said campus police also didn’t have any record of a report filed in 2002 by McQueary.

Mountz noted that the 23-page grand jury report was the state attorney general’s summary of testimony, so it’s unclear what McQueary’s full testimony was. McQueary and a law firm representing him did not return phone calls Wednesday.

Pennsylvania lawmakers are starting to plan for a special commission that will examine the legal issues raised by the child sex-abuse scandal, which has raised questions both ethical and criminal about why allegations of abuse went unreported for so long.

The scandal has resulted in the ousting of school President Graham Spanier and longtime coach Joe Paterno, and has brought shame to one of college football’s legendary programs. Athletic Director Tim Curley has been placed on administrative leave, and Vice President Gary Schultz, who was in charge of the university’s police department, has stepped down.

Schultz and Curley are charged with lying to the grand jury and failure to report to police, and Sandusky is charged with child sex abuse. All maintain their innocence.

The commission being set up by Pennsylvania lawmakers will consider changes to state law in the wake of the scandal. The plan was described as being in the planning stage, including meetings of leaders and their aides.

Topics are likely to include mandatory reporting of suspected abuse, and the legal definition of child abuse, said Senate Democratic spokeswoman Lisa Scullin.

Sandusky’s lawyer, Joe Amendola, appeared with him on NBC’s “Rock Center” on Monday night and cast doubt on the evidence in the case.

“We anticipate we’re going to have at least several of those kids come forward and say, `This never happened. This is me. This is the allegation. It never occurred,’” Amendola said.

Sandusky, 67, appeared on the show by phone and said he had showered with boys but never molested them.

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