HARRISBURG —
Former Penn State President Graham B. Spanier was charged Thursday with hushing up child molestation allegations against Jerry Sandusky, making him the third school official charged in the alleged cover-up.
Prosecutors also added counts against the two former underlings, Timothy M. Curley and Gary C. Schultz.
Spanier was charged with perjury, obstruction, endangering the welfare of children and conspiracy, according to online court records. Curley and Schultz face new charges of endangering the welfare of children, obstruction and conspiracy, according to the records.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly and state police Commissioner Frank Noonan held a news conference at noon to discuss the charges, which were filed with a district justice outside Harrisburg.
Curley and Schultz have repeatedly asserted they are innocent, and at a news conference this summer Spanier’s attorneys insisted he was never told there was anything of a sexual nature involving Sandusky and children.
Curley, 58, the athletic director on leave while he serves out the last year of his contract, and Schultz, 63, who has retired as vice president for business and finance, were charged a year ago with lying to the grand jury that investigated the former Penn State assistant football coach and failing to properly report suspect child abuse. Their trial is set for early January in Harrisburg.
Spanier, 64, of State College, had been university president for 16 years when he was forced out as president after Sandusky’s arrest in November 2011. He has said he had no memory of email traffic concerning a 1998 complaint by a woman that Sandusky had showered with her son and only slight recollections about a 2001 complaint by a team assistant who said he stumbled onto Sandusky sexually abusing a boy inside a team shower.
Decisions by the three men in response to those complaints were highly criticized in a detailed report commissioned by Penn State and issued this summer by a group led by former FBI Director Louis Freeh. The report concluded Spanier, Curley, Schultz and then-coach Joe Paterno concealed Sandusky’s activities from the university trustees and “empowered” the abuse by giving him access to school facilities and the prestige of his university affiliation.
The Freeh report said the investigation turned up emails from 1998 in which the administrators discussed the matter, including a May 5 email from Curley to Schultz and Spanier, with “Joe Paterno” in the subject line. It read: “I have touched bases with the coach. Keep us posted. Thanks.”
Spanier told the Freeh team that he believed in 2001 the incident amounted to as “horseplay,” although an email sent by him to Curley at that time reflected a much more somber tone.
In that email, Spanier was reacting to a proposal by Curley in which they would not report Sandusky to authorities but instead tell him he needed help and that he could no longer bring children into Penn State facilities.
“The only downside for us is if the message isn’t ‘heard’ and acted upon, and we then become vulnerable for not having reported it,” Spanier wrote in 2001. “The approach you outline is humane and a reasonable way to proceed.”
Spanier’s lawyers have called the Freeh report a myth, and said he would have acted in 1998, 2001 or any time if he knew a predator like Sandusky was on campus.
Sandusky, who spent decades on the Penn State staff and was defensive coordinator during two national championship seasons, was convicted in June of the sexual abuse of 10 boys over 15 years. He has maintained he is innocent and was transferred to a maximum security prison on Wednesday, where he is serving a 30- to 60-year sentence.
Click here to subscribe to The Tribune-Democrat print edition.
Click here to subscribe to The Tribune-Democrat e-edition.
Homepage
Related Photos
-
FILE - In this Oct. 8, 2011, file photo Penn State president Graham Spanier, left, and head football coach Joe Paterno talk before an NCAA college football game against Iowa in State College, Pa. Spanier is accused of perjury, endangering children and other charges in the Jerry Sandusky molestation scandal. According to online court records charges were filed, Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012, against Penn State's ex-president and two other administrators in what prosecutors called �a conspiracy of silence." (AP Photo/Gene Puskar, File)
Discussion
Former Penn State president Spanier charged
- Tribune-Democrat News Slideshow
- Latest News
-
-
State police: Ex-Pa. judge stole coke from cases
A western Pennsylvania judge who abruptly resigned last year was charged Thursday with stealing cocaine from evidence in cases before him.
-
No 'Idol' threat: Police say couple stabbed each other over TV show
A couple face charges after police in York County say they stabbed each other during an argument over which contestant should win ‘American Idol.’
-
10 things to know for today
Your look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today:
-
Route 219 work gets green light
The federal Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday issued the permit needed to allow work to begin on the 11-mile stretch of four-lane limited access highway from Somerset to Meyersdale.
-
Rewards offered in death of eagle
The Pennsylvania Game Commission and The Humane Society of the United States are offering rewards totaling more than $5,000 for information about the killing of a mature bald eagle in northern Cambria County.
-
State police: Ex-Pa. judge stole coke from cases
- Local News
-
-
State police: Ex-Pa. judge stole coke from cases
A western Pennsylvania judge who abruptly resigned last year was charged Thursday with stealing cocaine from evidence in cases before him.
-
Route 219 work gets green light
The federal Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday issued the permit needed to allow work to begin on the 11-mile stretch of four-lane limited access highway from Somerset to Meyersdale.
-
Rewards offered in death of eagle
The Pennsylvania Game Commission and The Humane Society of the United States are offering rewards totaling more than $5,000 for information about the killing of a mature bald eagle in northern Cambria County.
-
Mayoral candidates will run unopposed in fall election
The results are in – although unofficial until a few weeks from now – and at least two positions will changes hands in Somerset County come fall.
-
State makes a new bid to privatize prison jobs
The Department of Corrections is considering whether to privatize mental health care in the state prison system, a move that would eliminate the jobs of 187 prison employees across Pennsylvania.
-
State police: Ex-Pa. judge stole coke from cases
- Sports
-
Ottawa Senators goalie Craig Anderson stands alone in his crease after allowing the Pittsburgh Penguins' fifth goal during third -period NHL hockey playoff game action in Ottawa, Ontario, Wednesday, May 22, 2013. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Adrian Wyld)
-
Pens seize 3-1 series lead over Senators
Sidney Crosby was careful not to get too far ahead of himself after helping the Pittsburgh Penguins rout the Ottawa Senators for a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series.
-
Liriano dominant in third start with Bucs
Francisco Liriano’s fastball is going where he wants it to. The Pittsburgh Pirates are following suit.
-
Miller improving, but cautious about return
Heath Miller knows his football career isn’t over, just paused. When the injured Pittsburgh Steelers Pro Bowl tight end will be able to hit the “play” button again is anybody’s guess.
-
Senators relish chance to even series with Penguins
After a win in Game 3, the Ottawa Senators are confident they can tie their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
-
Snider’s grand slam lifts Bucs over Cubs
Travis Snider took a pregame pep talk from his manager to heart. Relaxed and with a clear head, he delivered a crucial sixth-inning home run for the second time in five games.
-
Pens seize 3-1 series lead over Senators
- Features
-
-
Toe-tapping music | Jazz Along the River kicks off Friday at St. Mary’s in Cambria City
Jazz Along the River will be back again this summer. The monthly jazz event has become a fixture at St. Mary Byzantine Catholic Church pavilion, Fifth Avenue and Power Street in the Cambria City section of Johnstown. The series of concerts will feature a different jazz group on the fourth Friday of each month through September.
- Events | Whitewater bash
- Tribute to women | YWCA will honor seven for community contributions
-
Toe-tapping music | Jazz Along the River kicks off Friday at St. Mary’s in Cambria City
- Lifestyles
-
-
Pa. Turnpike to install electric car charging stations
The Pennsylvania Turnpike will take a "leap of faith" with its new electric-vehicle charging stations.
- ACLU threatens legal action against Red Lion School District in transgender case
- Baseball, ice cream make winning combination
-
Pa. Turnpike to install electric car charging stations
- Multimedia
-
-
VIDEO | Sci-Fi expo connects with fans
The Force is strong with Casey Bassett.
In two years of feverish planning and laborious love, the 24-year-old has roughly tripled the size of his homegrown geek convention, Sci-Fi Valley Con, being held this year at the Jaffa Shrine in Altoona. Today is the 2013 convention’s final day. - VIDEO | Deer gets on, off city bus
- VIDEO | Bards behind bars
-
Obama Offers Drone Strike Defense
Raw: Heckler Interrupts Obama on Guantanamo
A Slice of Apple History Up for Grabs
Johnson: Don't Blame Islam or UK Policy
Raw: 80-Year-Old Climbs Mount Everest
Wash. State Man Arrested Following Ricin Scare
Chain-Reaction School Bus Crash Injures About 50
Raw: Scuffles in London After Hacking Death
Texas Students Coach Teachers on Fitness
New Forecasting Tool Eyed for Hurricane Season
Meet MJ, the Bike Riding Tabby Cat
Britain Attack Believed Linked to Radical Islam
Raw: Kevin Durant Tours Moore After $1M Pledge
Man Shot While Questioned in Boston Probe
Weiner Launches Bid to Become NYC Mayor
School Storm Protection Spotty in Tornado Zones
Moore Native Toby Keith Tours Tornado Damage
