Murder Under the Friday Night Lights is highlighting the crimes of Jerry Sandusky, a former assistant football coach at Penn State University in Centre County, Pennsylvania.
For over a decade, Sandusky was accused of sexually abusing multiple boys as young as 10, and none of the incidents were reported to the police.
It wasn’t until 2008 that a teenage boy told his mother about inappropriate encounters he had with Sandusky since meeting him in 2007.
His mother reported it to school officials, who contacted the police, and an investigation began.
In September 2010, Sandusky stepped down from his position at The Second Mile, a group home for at-risk youth. It’s where authorities believe he met his victims.
The following year, in November, seven other boys accused Sandusky of sexually abusing them, and Sandusky was charged with sexual abuse.
An investigation revealed that some of the incidents took place in the Lasch Building on the Penn State campus. And it went on after he retired in 1999 because he still had a key to the building.
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelIn 2012, Sandusky was found guilty of 45 counts of child sexual assault, and a judge sentenced him to 30 to 60 years in prison.
Three Peen State employees were jailed for failing to report Jerry Sandusky
Three Penn State officials, Graham Spanier, Tim Curley, and Gary Schultz, received jail sentences after they were convicted of child endangerment.
Authorities said that when the three men were made aware that Sandusky was sexually abusing children, they failed to report it to the police.
Joe Paterno, the head football coach at Penn State, was also accused of knowing about Sandusky’s child sex scandal.
Although he said he had no knowledge of the incidents and wasn’t charged, Paterno was ultimately fired from his position before he was supposed to resign.
Penn State went on to pay $100 million to Sandusky’s victim.
Jerry Sandusky was resentenced after his previous conviction was overturned
Sandusky maintained his innocence throughout the years and filed multiple appeals to get a new trial, but they were all denied.
It wasn’t until February 2019 that he was given a new sentence due to changes in the law.
Nine months later, a judge handed down the same 30- to 60-year sentence.
Sandusky is still trying to get a new trial and has filed another appeal.
Murder Under the Friday Night Lights airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on Investigation Discovery.