Jerry Sandusky Jurors Selected as New Allegations Emerge in Case
Nine of 16 jurors were selected on Tuesday for the child sex abuse trial of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky – the same day that new allegations emerged that Sandusky had written "creepy" love letters to one of his alleged victims.
Thus far, the jury includes five men and four women including a high school teacher, a doctor, a school bus driver, and an engineer.
Over 6,000 summonses were sent to residents in Center County and the process of finding all 16 jurors, 12 jurors and four alternates, could take days. Over 100 potential jurors will be showing up to the court room on Wednesday for questioning.
Sandusky, 68, is facing 52 charges of child sex abuse involving 10 children over a 15-year period. Prosecutors have argued that Sandusky sexually assaulted young boys that he met through his charity for at-risk youth, The Second Mile.
In March, Sandusky's lawyer Joseph Amendola filed a petition to have the charges against his client dismissed, arguing that the allegations against the former assistant football coach are "non-specific." Amendola also argued that for eight of the 10 alleged victims the statute of limitations had expired.
The court, however, refused to dismiss the charges and Sandusky's trial is set to get underway on Monday. Eight of the 10 alleged victims are expected to testify against the 68-year-old, including "Victim 4," who alleges that the former assistant coach penned "creepy" love letters to him.
"Victim 4" will be the first witness to testify against Sandusky and is now 28-years-old. He is expected to read the letters to the court.
Sandusky has vehemently denied the accusations made against him, but at the height of the scandal he made incriminating remarks to media outlets that have caused many to speculate the coach's claims.
In his first interview following the highly public allegations, the former assistant coach admitted to NBC's Bob Costas that he "horsed around" with boys.
"I have horsed around with kids I have showered [with them] after workouts. I have hugged them and I have touched their legs without intent of sexual contact," Sandusky told the television host.