After a multi-year investigation by the PA State Police and investigators with the PA Attorney General’s Office, the AG filed an indictment charging Jerry Sandusky with molesting eight boys in November 2011.
Sandusky was tried and convicted within seven months.
Judge John Cleland, a Republican, managed to conduct an unusually swift trial under pressure. The NCAA had threatened to cancel the 2012 Penn State football season, so the state had to convict Sandusky by early summer to ensure the football season could start in late summer.
Private Hotel Meeting Sets Trial Schedule
Judge Cleland demonstrated his ability to expedite the trial by meeting with lead prosecutor Frank Fina and Sandusky’s defense attorney Joseph Amendola at the Hilton Garden Inn. They set the trial schedule during the meeting and took steps to ensure it would not be delayed.
Judge Cleland decided not to hold the meeting between the prosecutors and defense lawyer in court, which would attract significant publicity, but at a local hotel where the press could not attend.
Financial Impact on University and Community
Everyone understood that Penn State could only start their football season once Sandusky was convicted. If the NCAA canceled Penn State football for even one season, the football program might never recover.
The football program is Penn State’s biggest revenue generator and serves as a key marketing tool for the university. Residents also benefit financially from out-of-town visitors who attend games at the 100,000-seat Penn State stadium.
The general consensus was that if Sandusky’s trial didn’t result in a conviction by the end of June, the NCAA might view it unfavorably and potentially cancel the football season. The projected economic repercussions of the NCAA imposing the “death penalty” on the PSU football program were estimated to exceed $500 million.
It would take years to restore Penn State’s reputation as a football powerhouse.
The only thing preventing the completion of the fast trial task was Sandusky’s preliminary hearing.
In Pennsylvania, Sandusky was entitled to a preliminary hearing. During this hearing, he could find out his accusers’ identities and the allegations against him.
Defense Rights and Scientific Evidence
During the preliminary hearing, Sandusky’s defense team can question the alleged victims about their mental health, the number and type of police interviews, issues related to repressed and recovered memory, and challenge the central scientific issue in the case. Most men accusing Sandusky of abusing them as boys did not remember the abuse when the police first approached them. It was after their civil attorneys arranged for repressed and recovered memory therapy that they recalled the abuse.
During the preliminary hearing, the defense could have requested a second hearing to determine the validity of repressed, recovered memory therapy as a scientific method. This would help establish whether it could be used as admissible evidence to explain why the accusers changed their stories.
A second hearing would have followed the preliminary hearing referred to as a FRYE (or Daubert) hearing, which may have excluded many or all of the alleged victim witnesses. Conducting the hearing would have taken months to gather the experts and sort out the conflicting scientific claims.
It was impossible to conduct a hearing on the science of repressed, recovered memories and still hold to a June 2012 conviction.
If the science hearing had taken place, the alleged victims would likely have been excluded from testifying, as repressed recovered memory therapy is not accepted in most courts. This could have led to the case being dismissed due to a lack of competent witnesses.
Judge Cleland knew he had to find a way to cancel the preliminary hearing. He had set it for December 13, 2011.
On the evening of December 12, the night before the hearing, Judge Cleland met at a hotel with the prosecutor, Fina, and Sandusky’s attorney, Joe Amendola.
Joe Amendola handled the defense of Jerry Sandusky, in a way that satisfied both the judge and the prosecutor, Frank Fina.
Secret Meeting Leads to Waived Preliminary Hearing
During the hotel meeting, the judge established a quick trial schedule to avoid the NCAA imposing the “Death Penalty” on the PSU football program.
The judge also persuaded Amendola to have Sandusky waive his right to a preliminary hearing. These decisions were made outside of court without a stenographer
Amedola’s official explanation to his client was that the prosecution wouldn’t seek a bail increase if new charges were brought as long as Sandusky agreed to waive the preliminary hearing.
Amendola understood that waiving the preliminary hearing was not a deal negotiated between the prosecutor and the defense. It was a deal between himself and Cleland because only the judge had the authority to raise the bail, not the prosecution.
The trial moved forward with all haste.
The prosecution delayed turning over 12,000 pages of discovery in boxes, until ten days before Sandusky was going to trial.
Amendola asked for an adjournment. The judge denied it. Amendola asked to be taken off the case. The judge denied it.
Judge John Cleland needed Sandusky convicted quickly and he got the job done.
Judge Cleland’s Agreement with Prosecutor and Defense
Judge Cleland could not allow Amendola to quit because it would have led to an adjournment to give Sandusky time to find a new lawyer. When Cleland refused to give Amendola time to review the evidence, obtain experts, and understand what happened in this multi-year complex investigation, Amendola could have resigned and refused to participate.
But that was not the agreement between the judge, the prosecutor, and Amendola.
The deal they made was that Judge Cleland would take this case from indictment to trial and conviction in seven months.
Judge Cleland sentenced Sandysky to 30-60 years in prison. Penn State’s football season was saved.
The off-the-record, secret, unreported, unrecorded meeting at a local hotel took place, crucial decisions were made, and were unknown until four years after the conviction.
When it became known Sandusky’s lawyers asked, why was this meeting kept secret until four years after the trial and conviction? Why was this meeting not held in court? Why no court reporter? Why no recording?
Judge Cleland was upset about these questions.
“Now [Sandusky’s attorneys] have chosen to impugn the integrity of the court itself,” the judge said.
But whatever anyone else might say, Judge Cleland did it – he got Sandusky convicted in seven months, and in a sense redefining the meaning of speedy trial.
Seven Months Is Comparatively Fast
Phil Spector (Murder of Lana Clarkson)
Indictment Date: November 2003
Trial Start Date: March 2007
Time Lapse: 3 years and 4 months
Elizabeth Holmes (Theranos Fraud)
Indictment Date: June 2018
Trial Start Date: September 2021
Time Lapse: 3 years and 3 months
Casey Anthony (Murder of Daughter)
Indictment Date: October 2008
Trial Start Date: May 2011
Time Lapse: 2 years and 7 months
R. Kelly (Sexual Abuse)
Indictment Date: February 2019
Trial Start Date: August 2021
Time Lapse: 2 years and 6 months
Terry Nichols (Oklahoma City Bombing)
Indictment Date: August 1995
Trial Start Date: November 1997
Time Lapse: 2 years and 3 months
Jeffrey Skilling (Enron Scandal)
Indictment Date: February 2004
Trial Start Date: January 2006
Time Lapse: 1 year and 11 months
Harvey Weinstein (Sexual Assault)
Indictment Date: May 2018
Trial Start Date: January 2020
Time Lapse: 1 year and 8 months
Timothy McVeigh (Oklahoma City Bombing)
Indictment Date: August 1995
Trial Start Date: April 1997
Time Lapse: 1 year and 8 months
Ted Kaczynski (Unabomber)
Indictment Date: April 1996
Trial Start Date: November 1997 (eventually plea)
Time Lapse: 1 year and 7 months
Bill Cosby (Sexual Assault)
Indictment Date: December 2015
Trial Start Date: June 2017
Time Lapse: 1 year and 6 months
Keith Raniere (Sex Trafficking, Racketeering, and more)
Indictment Date: March 2018
Trial Start Date: May 2019
Time Lapse: 1 year and 2 months
Jerry Sandusky
Indictment Date: November 11, 2011
Trial Start Date: June 12, 2012
Time Lapse: Seven months
