The victim in an incident that ultimately led to the downfall of legendary head coach Joe Paterno and helped trigger epic sanctions against the Penn State football program is planning to file a lawsuit against the university, the unidentified male’s attorneys confirmed Thursday.
In a statement, the lawyers blasted Penn State for its “egregious and reckless conduct,” stating that the school’s conduct allowed former Nittany Lions assistant Jerry Sandusky to continue to victimize their client in the years after high-ranking school officials -- including Paterno -- were made aware of the infamous shower incident in 2001.
“Our client has to live the rest of his life not only dealing with the effects of Sandusky’s childhood sexual abuse, but also with the knowledge that many powerful adults, including those at the highest levels of Penn State, put their own interests and the interests of a child predator above their legal obligations to protect him,” the statement read, in part.
The victim -- known as Victim 2 in the multi-count indictment against Sandusky -- was allegedly raped by Sandusky in a shower located in the school’s football building. That was the incident then-grad assistant Mike McQueary witnessed, at least in part, and informed Paterno of.
The failure of high-ranking PSU officials to earnestly pursue the allegations was effectively a cover-up initiated to protect the storied football program, with the lawyers’ statement saying that “Sandusky’s abuse of Victim 2 and other children is a direct result of a conspiracy to conceal Sandusky’s conduct and the decisions by top Penn State officials that facilitated and enabled his access to victims.”
The press release also provided, as if it’s needed, further proof of Sandusky’s depravity:In a recording of a pair of voicemails released with the statement and posted online by the lawyers, a voice that’s purportedly Sandusky’s expresses his love and says he wants to express his feelings “up front.”
The voicemails are dated Sept. 12 and Sept. 19, less than two months before the former Penn State coach was arrested on child sex abuse charges late last year.
The second voicemail asks whether Victim 2 would like to attend Penn State’s next game.
Sandusky left “numerous” voicemails for their client in the fall of 2011, the attorneys said.At the time those voicemails were left, Sandusky had already been under investigation for close to a year. The audio of the voicemail asking the victim if he wanted to attend a Penn State game can be heard HERE, while the other can be heard HERE.