Compared to the O. J. Simpson double-murder trial, a mind-numbing TV soap opera that dragged on for nine months and ended in an acquittal, Jerry Sandusky's sexual molestation trial, completed in less than three weeks, produced a verdict that makes sense. Simpson had a battery of high-profile defense attorneys, who, like the prosecutors and the judge, played to the TV camera in one of the media capitals of the world. The Sandusky trial, held in sleepy central Pennsylvania, and not televised, did not last long enough (June 4 to June 22) for any of the court house participants other than Jerry Sandusky to become celebrities. Most Americans were shocked and outraged by the Simpson acquittal. In the Sandusky case, people were relieved by the guilty verdict. The Simpson case represents everything that is wrong with our criminal justice system. While it took too long to bring Jerry Sandusky to justice, once he was arrested, the system worked the way it should. (The next phase of the case will be about why this prolific pedophile was not arrested years ago.)
Two days after the Centre County jury returned the Sandusky verdict, one of his attorneys, Joe Amendola, hinted of an appeal based upon the Sixth Amendment right to effective legal representation. Although Amendola won't be involved in the appellate process, he believes that Judge John Cleland did not give him and his co-attorney, Karl Rominger, enough time to prepare an adequate defense.
While it is true that the seven months between the former Penn State coach's arrest and trial is, by the sluggish standards of American criminal justice, quite speedy, Amendola's argument has no merit.
Attorney Joe Amendola claims that he and attorney Karl Rominger needed more time to prepare Jerry Sandusky's defense. This begs the question: time to do what? To dig up more dirt on the eight victims who took the stand for the prosecution? What dirt? All of these witnesses were credible and compelling because they were obviously telling the truth. Did the defense attorneys actually think the jurors would consider all of them liars? Did the defense need more time to find more character witnesses like the defendant's former Penn State coaching colleagues who told the jury they liked to shower with young boys, too? Perhaps Mr. Amendola had in mind putting boys on the stand the defendant hadn't molested. This testimony would have been consistent with Sandusky's statement to NBC's Bob Costas that he hadn't molested all of the troubled kids he had helped through his molestation net, The Second Mile.
More time for a proper defense? In the Sandusky case, there was no such thing as an adequate defense. At the close of the prosecution's case, the defense attorneys should have thrown their client to the mercy of the court, begged for some kind of plea deal. (Their client, as a sociopath who can't believe molesting young boys is even a crime, would not have gone along with this.)
In the Sandusky case, Attorney Amendola has nothing to complain about. Judge Cleland allowed the defense the jury they had asked for--twelve residents of Centre County, the home of Penn State University. In fact, eight of the jurors had direct or indirect associations with the school, the biggest employer in the region. If there was ever a trial ripe for jury nullification, it was this one. Moreover, it was fortunate for the defense that the jurors didn't learn about Matt Sandusky, the adopted son who now claims he had been sexually molested by the coach.
If there was a defect in the Sandusky defense, it was the defendant. A dream team of defense attorneys, with all the time in the world, could not have gotten this defendant off. Attorneys Joe Amendola and Karl Rominger did the best they could with what they had. The evidence against Sandusky was overwhelming, and suggested decades of sexual molestation, and hundreds of victims. Talk of an appeal in this case is ridiculous.
Jerry Sandusky is awaiting his sentence in the Centre County Correctional Facility. He is living alone in a cell within a special unit reserved for sex offenders and prisoners deemed mentally ill. His attorney, Karl Rominger, after visiting him on Monday, June 24, reported that Sandusky's mood is "defiant." (Exactly what you'd expect from a sociopathic sex predator.)
After the media left town, Bellefonte, Pennsylvania returned to its small town self. But the media will return, because the Penn State Scandal is far from over.
Two days after the Centre County jury returned the Sandusky verdict, one of his attorneys, Joe Amendola, hinted of an appeal based upon the Sixth Amendment right to effective legal representation. Although Amendola won't be involved in the appellate process, he believes that Judge John Cleland did not give him and his co-attorney, Karl Rominger, enough time to prepare an adequate defense.
While it is true that the seven months between the former Penn State coach's arrest and trial is, by the sluggish standards of American criminal justice, quite speedy, Amendola's argument has no merit.
Attorney Joe Amendola claims that he and attorney Karl Rominger needed more time to prepare Jerry Sandusky's defense. This begs the question: time to do what? To dig up more dirt on the eight victims who took the stand for the prosecution? What dirt? All of these witnesses were credible and compelling because they were obviously telling the truth. Did the defense attorneys actually think the jurors would consider all of them liars? Did the defense need more time to find more character witnesses like the defendant's former Penn State coaching colleagues who told the jury they liked to shower with young boys, too? Perhaps Mr. Amendola had in mind putting boys on the stand the defendant hadn't molested. This testimony would have been consistent with Sandusky's statement to NBC's Bob Costas that he hadn't molested all of the troubled kids he had helped through his molestation net, The Second Mile.
More time for a proper defense? In the Sandusky case, there was no such thing as an adequate defense. At the close of the prosecution's case, the defense attorneys should have thrown their client to the mercy of the court, begged for some kind of plea deal. (Their client, as a sociopath who can't believe molesting young boys is even a crime, would not have gone along with this.)
In the Sandusky case, Attorney Amendola has nothing to complain about. Judge Cleland allowed the defense the jury they had asked for--twelve residents of Centre County, the home of Penn State University. In fact, eight of the jurors had direct or indirect associations with the school, the biggest employer in the region. If there was ever a trial ripe for jury nullification, it was this one. Moreover, it was fortunate for the defense that the jurors didn't learn about Matt Sandusky, the adopted son who now claims he had been sexually molested by the coach.
If there was a defect in the Sandusky defense, it was the defendant. A dream team of defense attorneys, with all the time in the world, could not have gotten this defendant off. Attorneys Joe Amendola and Karl Rominger did the best they could with what they had. The evidence against Sandusky was overwhelming, and suggested decades of sexual molestation, and hundreds of victims. Talk of an appeal in this case is ridiculous.
Jerry Sandusky is awaiting his sentence in the Centre County Correctional Facility. He is living alone in a cell within a special unit reserved for sex offenders and prisoners deemed mentally ill. His attorney, Karl Rominger, after visiting him on Monday, June 24, reported that Sandusky's mood is "defiant." (Exactly what you'd expect from a sociopathic sex predator.)
After the media left town, Bellefonte, Pennsylvania returned to its small town self. But the media will return, because the Penn State Scandal is far from over.