The Ugly Truth About Joe Paterno and the Sandusky Rape of 10 Year Old - And What We Can Learn From It

"Here's what we do if someone comes to me with an accusation of sexual abuse: I pick up the phone and call the cops." William Thornton, SBC Plodder
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"I did what I was supposed to with the one charge brought to my attention", Joe Paterno
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If you are easily offended and grossed out, please don't read this post. I'm going to explain to you the cold, harsh reality of what took place at Penn State, and why Joe Paterno should be fired immediately for failing to report to authorities what his former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky did to a 10-year old boy in the showers of Penn State's locker room.

While Joe Paterno has escaped legal jeopardy for now because he did report the offense to his superior, is that really what we expect from a guy like Paterno? The man who IS Penn State football, the face of college football, the best he could do was to call his athletic director? Paterno is now saying he didn't know the details of what happened when he was told....DO WHAT??? All he needed to know was that a 59-year old man was naked in the shower with a 10 year old boy, and he should have been on the phone with the police. But he didn't do it.

If you're the janitor and you walk in and see Sandusky performing oral sex on an 11-year old (which did happen in the case of victim #8 in the grand jury report), ok, maybe the best we can expect is for you to report it to your supervisor...but Joe Pa, the best he could do was report it up the chain? It is ridiculous.

But let me tell you what Sandusky did to this 10-year old boy in the incident that is the focus of the allegations. From the grand jury report here is what was reported under oath concerning the rape of "Victim #2" (warning, the following indented material is graphic; do not read it unless you want to know the truth about what this deranged pervert actually did to this boy):

"As the graduate assistant entered the locker room, he was surprised to find the lights and showers on. He then heard rhythmic slapping sounds. He believed those to be the sound of sexual activity....He saw a naked boy, Victim 2, whose age he estimated to be ten years old, with his hands up against the wall, being subjected to anal intercourse by a naked Sandusky."

I'm sorry if that offended you. But sometimes the bland reports of "molestation" don't really do justice to the sinister nature of the actual act itself. This 59-year old man used his notoriety and wealth and his connection to Penn State football to gain access to this boy and others...so that he ultimately could hold a 10-year old boy against the wall of a shower and violently rape him in the Penn State football locker room.

Now, if you read the grand jury report, you will see that the graduate assistant who witnessed this violent rape called his father as he was understandably shaken by what he saw. Instead of calling the police, they called Paterno. Mistake #1. This graduate assistant witnessed a violent rape - what if it was the rape of a woman and not a boy? Would he go call his dad? Of course not, he would either intervene with force of his own, or he would immediately call 9-1-1 and not let the perpetrator get away.

Church members, let this be a lesson to you: don't ever, ever, report sexual abuse at your church or by a member or minister, to the pastor or to a minister or deacon or trustee. They cannot be trusted to do the right thing. Any person, whether it is a head football coach or a minister or a school administrator, who has a vested interest in the institution that is somehow connected to the victim or perpetrator, can't be trusted with the information!! As William Thornton wrote today about this, there is only one thing to do when you hear of sexual abuse: stop, pick up your cell phone, and call your local police department. Report what you saw or heard, and let THEM investigate. If they need to tell your pastor, they will.

Now, back to Paterno: you might say that he didn't know the nature of the offense that the graduate assistant saw. That is what Paterno basically said in his statement Sunday night. But that doesn't square with the grand jury report. From the grand jury report:

"Joseph V. Paterno testified to receiving the graduate assistant's report at his home on a Saturday morning. Paterno testified that the graduate assistant was very upset. Paterno called Tim Curley, Penn State Athletic Director and Paterno's immediate supervisor, to his home the very next day, and reported to him that the graduate assistant had seen Jerry Sandusky in the Lasch Building showers fondling or doing something of a sexual nature to a young boy."

Did you read that? Paterno knew of at least "fondling" or "something of a sexual nature" that Sandusky was doing to a young boy. What more evidence did he need to know a crime had occured against a helpless young boy in the showers of the Penn State football program?

But now Paterno defends his inaction by saying:

"It was obvious that the witness [the graduate assistant] was distraught over what he saw, but he at no time related to me the very specific actions contained in the grand jury report."

What does "very specific" mean? The grand jury report says that he knew Sandusky was in the showers "fondling" or doing something sexual to a young boy. Do you see how twisted this is? Paterno is now saying he didn't know how bad it was...implying he WOULD HAVE reported it if he knew more details?

Here is perhaps the most shocking part of the grand jury report:

"Approximately one and a half weeks later, the graduate assistant was called to a meeting with Penn State Athletic Director Curley and Senior Vice President for Finance and Business Gary Schultz. The graduate assistant reported to Curley and Schultz that he had witnessed what he believed to be Sandusky having anal sex with a boy in the Lasch Building showers. Curley and Shultz assured the graduate assistant that they would look into it and determine what further action they would take. Paterno was not present for this meeting.

The graduate assistant heard back from Curley a couple of weeks later. He was told that Sandusky's keys to the locker room were taken away and that the incident had been reported to The Second Mile. The graduate assistant was never questioned by University Police and no other entity conducted an investigation until he testified in Grand Jury, December 2010."

Do you know who at Penn State University oversaw and had ultimate responsibility for the University Police department. Yep, Gary Schultz, one of the first men who was brought into this story by the Athletic Director. Like I said, don't ever report your abuse to people connected to the institution.

So yes, Joe Paterno should be fired. If Jim Tressel should be fired, if Woody Hayes should have been fired, so should Joe Pa for failing miserably to do the right thing. No one cared to even find out who the victim was. All they cared about was the reputation of their precious institution.

And so it is with the institutions of government, religion, and education.

Report sexual abuse to the police department, don't go to the coach, the preacher, the teacher, or your boss.

Go straight to the cops.

At Least in College Football, Failing to Report a Molester Is a Crime - But How Does Joe Paterno Still Have a Job?

In one of the most disgusting and disturbing cases of repeated child molestations I've heard of, former Penn State assistant coach and football legend Jerry Sandusky finally has been arrested and won't be able to molest boys any more.

And thank the Lord two Penn State officials have been indicted by a grand jury for lying to the grand jury about one of the cases of abuse, and for failing to report the abuse to authorities.

While many Baptists get away with not reporting possible molestations of their clergy, at least in this case those who did not report are going to be held accountable.

Says Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly:

"There is no indication that anyone from the university ever attempted to learn the identity of the child who was sexually assaulted on their campus or made any follow-up effort to obtain more information from the person who witnessed the attack first-hand."

The only question remains: how does Joe Paterno, the head coach still have a job? As recorded on pages 6 and 7 in the grand jury findings of fact (WARNING...the contents of the 23-page grand jury report are graphic and disturbing), a graduate assistant that observed Sandusky sexually assaulting a 10-year old in the Penn State locker room in 2002 reported the incident directly to Penn State head football coach Joe Paterno.

What did Paterno do? Well, he called his Athletic Director, Tim Curley. Curley was Paterno's immediate supervisor. Curley and another Penn State big-wig, Gary Schultz had a meeting with the graduate assistant and assured him it was being taken care of.

But Curley and Schultz both failed to report the incident to any authorities. In the grand jury report there was at least one young boy victimized by Sandusky AFTER the 2002 sexual assault - that would have been prevented had Curley and Schultz - or Paterno - done the right thing and gone immediately to the police.

Curley and Schultz are being charged with perjury as well, since the grand jury believes they may have lied to them, claiming the graduate assistant did not indicate that a crime had been committed or that the incident was of a sexual nature when he first reported the assault to Paterno. Read the grand jury report, and you'll see why the grand jury didn't believe their story.

Why am I writing about a football sexual molestation scandal on the Watchdog blog? I can't help but compare and contrast this report to similar cases of molestation involving "men of God" and how they are handled.

A few observations:

- Is it not amazing that all of these men that knew of the 2002 molestation never reported it to any authorities? Why not? The reason is obvious: they feared the negative consequences of a public scandal involving their beloved institution. Very smart men - a graduate assistant, the most beloved football coach in NCAA history, two administrators, even the graduate assistant's father - all made the wrong choice, and their inaction resulted in at least one more boy being needlessly victimized. We see the same in religious institutions - fear of negative publicity causing men to not report and letting the molester move on.

- the two men indicted for failing to report are now claiming they didn't know how terrible the actions were of Sandusky. Sound familiar? I think of the Trinity Baptist scandal with Bob Gray - what was the congregation told about the allegations? That whatever Gray was accused of was not of a "sexual nature". The fact is Bob Gray was a pedophile. He french-kissed boys and girls in his office, even molested a little girl during her baptism. Yet those in authority in the church who had the power to stop him failed to do it, and they conveniently mischaracterized his actions. He could have been stopped had one person made a phone call to the sheriff's office, but no one did.

- if you read the grand jury report you will see that Sandusky used his fame, his money, gifts and notoriety as a Penn State legend to befriend his victims. His legendary status gave him open access to young boys at Penn State, and at public schools. He took them to Penn State football games, had them stay at his house, took them on trips. Molesters are molesters - whether they are football coaches or pastors - and they will use their power and position to gain access to their victims.

Church leaders, pastors, ministers everywhere: take notice of this case. Nine years after these men at Penn State failed to report a sexual assault on a minor, and after their arrogance caused them to allegedly lie about it to the grand jury, they are going to be held accountable.

But it should come as no surprise: the Penn State University institution is standing behind Curley and Schultz, and they will pay for their legal defense.

Schullers Say: "Let Us Eat Your Cake - Delivered by Our Limo Drivers"

"....They would appreciate meals over the next three to four weeks. They are to be sent to the church in order to be transported to Arvella [Schuller]. The limo drivers could pick up the dinners or meet in the Tower Lobby around 4:30 p.m." Email sent to Crystal Cathedral members this week requesting food donations for Robert and Arvella Schuller

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It was reported today by the Orange County Register that leaders of the bankrupt Crystal Cathedral church distributed an email request to members that they deliver food to the church to help feed the ailing Robert and Arvella Schuller.

And here's the kicker: the food will be picked up by the "limo drivers" at the church, and then delivered directly to the Schuller home.

These people are millionaires, their children are quite wealthy also, and yet they are asking the church members to bring food to the church to feed the pastor. And they have the brazenness to declare that "limos" will transport the food.

We've gone all the way from "let them eat cake", to now "let us eat YOUR cake, delivered by the limos you're paying for".

Let's be real. This is probably a stunt to garner support for the pastor, to mobilize the peeps so they can feel good about themselves in performing acts of kindness for their spiritual guru. In all likelihood the Schullers won't be eating the food. No public figure in their right mind would consume food delivered by strangers to the church, then transported in "limos" to their home!

But it must feel good to know that you can just ask for food deliveries, and they will show up at your front door delivered by your limo driver!

As Mel Brooks once said, "It's good to be da king."

Robert Morris: I Check Tithing Records of Daughter's Boyfriends, Don't Want to "Give Her to a Thief" - Full-Blown Legalism on Display

"Of course I would check the tithing record of a young man that wants my daughter. Why would I give my daughter to a thief?" Robert Morris, explaining why he pulled the giving records of a church member who wanted to date his daughter, and ultimately married her.
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Some fathers might use their investigatory powers as a law enforcement officer to run a background check on a daughter's boyfriend. The boy might be a felon, after all, or a pervert.

But Robert Morris takes a different tact in his sermon from October 30, 2011: he admits to using his investigatory powers as a mega church pastor to check the giving records of a boy who dates his daughter to see if he is tithing.

After all, what could be worse than your daughter going out with a non-tither, or a "thief" as Robert Morris says. Nothing like having your eventual father-in-law measuring your worth as a man based on whether you fork over 10% to his church or not.

Watch Robert explain below why he pulled the giving record of his eventual son-in-law; and see the full-blown legalism of Robert's tithing doctrine as he explains how the boy was "late" in tithing by one day, and he explains how non-tithers can not expect God to give them "significance" if they don't fork over 10% on time.

And of course, the question remains: how would Robert know if the boy was tithing unless he also knew his salary?

And the most disturbing question for members and contributors of Robert Morris' Gateway Church: did you know that your pastor has open access to your giving records? How could your church allow the pastor to see the giving records of the contributors?

Sammy Nuckolls Appears in Court - He Must Not Have Been Paying Attention to Ergun Caner Saga

Sammy Nuckolls appeared in court today in Olive Branch, Mississippi, and pleaded not guilty to charges of secretly video taping a woman in that city. At left is a picture of Sammy leaving court today, and his attorney behind him addressing the media.

Unfortunately for Sammy, he already has confessed to similar charges in Gosnell, Arkansas, so his ship is sunk.

Sammy and his lawyer have to be now absolutely regretting his confession in Gosnell, as he has broken one of the fundamental laws of traveling Baptist evangelists:

"Don't ever admit to doing wrong, and never apologize, and enlist the help of your Baptist friends to defend you and attack your accusers."

Sammy's confession to police in Gosnell, Arkansas is completely baffling. Apparently Sammy wasn't paying attention to the Ergun Caner saga last year. If he had been watching and learning, he would have known to never, ever confess to any wrong-doing and to always maintain his innocence, even in the face of overwhelming video evidence!

If Sammy had been paying attention last year he would have seen Ergun Caner caught red-handed by discerning Christians to be lying to congregations for years, speaking gibberish to convince people that he spoke Arabic, telling people he grew up in Turkey learning about America through watching imported pro wrestling programs, and even misrepresenting his past during a training session with our Marines. Through all the proof and video and audio showing Caner to be guilty of lying and deceiving Christians as a traveling evangelist, Caner never confessed, never apologized, and maintained his innocence throughout.

Sammy must have missed how Caner's friends came to his aid. Prominent pastors and theologians who had supported Caner spoke on his behalf, even helped Caner by attacking and blaming those who were trying to expose the truth about Caner.

Too bad Sammy didn't think on his feet fast enough, else he could have played the same card as Caner.

Sammy could have told the Gosnell police that he bought the pen to record himself practicing his sermons. He could have said it was part of his magic tricks gig, or that he used it to record videos for his blog. He could have said he regularly video taped other evangelists.

You say he was caught red-handed with videos of women on the pen? No problem. There could be an explanation. If there were videos of women on his pen, he could have plead ignorance, and proclaimed that he didn't know how the video got there. The woman in Gosnell said the pen camera was poking out of his shaving bag - maybe he left it there in record mode by mistake and bad luck. He could have blamed Calvinists of stealing his pen and placing videos there. He could have enlisted the help of prominent Southern Baptists in Lifeway and others that hired him as an evangelist to help defend his honor and attack those who are trying to take him down.

If Sammy was reading my blog earlier this year, he would have learned about the pastor at Berean Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida who was also accused of using his cover as a "man of God" to video tape women undressing. Even though the video tape showed the pastor setting up the camera, the minister adhered to the "never admit wrong-doing" rule and maintained his innocence and never wavered one bit! If he was innocent as he claimed, he is the unluckiest pastor because as fate would have it he was filmed in the same sequence before and after the women were filmed undressing! Darn! But he stayed true to his calling and never admitted wrong-doing - his church kicked out the recalcitrant who reported him to the police. The minister put on his best preacher suit and held a press conference in front of his church with bobble-headed church members behind him amening as he declared his innocence!

We could recount other instances of pastor misbehavior where the pastor stays silent, and the victims are kicked out as bad people, and the pastor is the hero.

If Sammy were a mega church pastor, he would have known better than to confess - he would have admitted to nothing, gotten his attorney involved right away to fight all charges, stayed silent himself, and returned to church on Sunday for the obligatory standing ovation given to pastors who are under attack from Satan himself.

Yes, Sammy should have maintained his innocence and let his friends defend him; and I wouldn't be surprised if he retracts his confession in Gosnell, fights all charges and is back in pulpits next year ministering to youth.

Such a strategy worked for Ergun Caner.