Jerry Sandusky Allegedly Wrote 'Creepy' Love Letters to Victim
Jerry Sandusky allegedly wrote love letters about a man and boy to his victim.
June 5, 2012 -- On the first day of jury selection in the child molestation trial of former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky, ABC News has learned that Sandusky allegedly wrote "creepy" love letters to his victims, eight of whom are set to testify against him.
Intimate love letters allegedly written from Sandusky to the accuser, known as Victim 4, will be read into testimony after the trial begins on Monday, sources close to the case told ABC News. Victim 4, who is expected to be the first witness called to testify against Sandusky, will also show the gifts, including a set of golf clubs, that Sandusky allegedly gave him during their relationship.
The letters, which were allegedly written in Sandusky's own handwriting, are expected to corroborate the testimony of the man known as Victim 4, now 28 years old, who met the coach through Sandusky's charity, the Second Mile. The victim's attorney won't talk about the letter, but sources describe the letters as "creepy" and note that one was a story written in the third person.
Ben Andreozzi, the alleged victim's attorney, did say, "They have evidence to support his allegations, and there's other evidence that has not been released to the public yet that I think will really resonate with the jury."
The revelations come on the first day of jury selection in the trial in which Sandusky faces 52 counts of child molestation charges. In addition to Victim 4, seven other alleged victims are expected to testify against the former defensive coordinator during the three-week trial beginning Monday.
In the grand jury presentment released at the time of Sandusky's arrest, Victim 4 was described as a victim of sexual abuse by Sandusky, abuse that included rape and oral sex in the hotels where the Penn State football team stayed. Victim 4 was allegedly molested while on trips with Sandusky and the football team to bowl games in Arizona and Texas, crimes that may result in federal prosecution.
Victim 4 was one of five alleged victims who petitioned Judge John Cleland to keep their identities anonymous during the trial, continuing a practice put in place by the state attorney general's office to protect their identities during the investigation. But Cleland denied their request, saying that all of the victims who were willing to testify must be willing to be revealed to the public.
Lawyers for the prosecution and the defense, as well as Cleland, interviewed dozens of Centre County, Pa., residents today to whittle the juror selection pool down and agree on a jury; by the end of the day, they had selected six jurors for the trial.
Defense attorneys also disclosed today that they had a potential witness list of more than 100 people, while the prosecution had a list of more than 50 potential witnesses. The lists included the widow and son of former Penn State head coach Joe Paterno, Sue and Jay Paterno, as well as the former head of Penn State University, Graham Spanier.