Jerry Sandusky is moments away from his sentencing hearing, which begins at 9am, and at which he will have to face as many as six of his victims, who plan on addressing the judge. One young man who was abused at age 12 or 13 will "tell the judge how this has affected him, how it's been painful and difficult," his lawyer tells CBS News. Sandusky himself also plans to plead his innocence to the judge, his lawyer expects. Though others, including his wife, have written letters supporting Sandusky, no one else is expected to speak on his behalf today. The former Penn State football coach faces up to 373 years in prison, NPR reports.
Last night, Sandusky released an audio recording from jail that blames a widespread conspiracy for making him appear guilty of sexual abuse, NBC Philadelphia reports. In it, he points a finger at a "veteran accuser" as well as "the media, investigators, the system, Penn State, psychologists, civil attorneys, and other accusers. They won. ... [But] attention, financial gain, prestige will all be temporary." More excerpts from the 3-minute speech:
- "Over and over, I asked why? Why didn’t we have a fair opportunity to prepare for trial? ... Maybe it will help others. Some vulnerable children who could be abused might not be as a result of all the publicity."
- "In my heart, I know I did not do these alleged, disgusting acts. My wife has been my only sex partner and that was after marriage. Our love continues."
- "Before you blame me, as others have, look at everything and everybody. Look at the preparation for the trial and the trial. ... Think about what happened, why and who made it happen."
- "We will continue to fight. We didn’t lose to proven facts, evidence, accurate locations, and times. Anything can be said."
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