Jeanne Clery was raped and murdered in her dorm room at Lehigh University by a fellow student in 1986. Her distraught parents came to believe that Lehigh had not taken sufficient efforts to keep its college campus safe, and lobbied for legislative action. In 1990, Congress passed what is commonly known as “The Clery Act.” The Act requires postsecondary institutions to maintain daily crime logs, notify its people when someone poses a safety threat to its institution, and report various campus crimes to the U.S. Department of Education. One finding of noncompliance can result in a fine of $35,000. The list of criminal acts has expanded over the years, but a sampling includes arson, car theft, forcible sexual assault, and rape.
You may recall I wrote about the coverup by Joe Paterno and Pedophilia State University when defensive guru Sandusky groomed vulnerable boys and committed sex acts against them. Sandusky was indicted in 2011 and presently sits in jail for a minimum of 30 years due to his crimes against defenseless minors, including on the very campus where he was seen by Graduate Assistant Michael McQueary (and former PSU starting QB) who witnessed a child rape in the football team’s locker room shower.
After Sandusky’s indictment, DOE launched an investigation into PSU’s compliance with the Clery Act, an investigation that spanned a 14 year period because the Sandusky crimes in “Happy Valley”, which is the nickname for the region where PSU is located, covered that time period. Earlier this month the DOE announced its findings when it imposed an all-time record fine of $2.4 million for various offenses. Of particular note, the investigative report noted that while PSU concealed Sandusky’s sexual crimes it allowed him “unfettered access” to campus buildings.
Not only does PSU have to pay a record fine, but the AP reported last week that PSU has paid out (so far) $93 million as a result of the 33 Sandusky accusers; $20 million have gone to attorneys defending PSU. Last month Mr. McQueary won his whistleblower lawsuit and the judge awarded the former Nittany Lion an amount ($7 million) that was more than he sought. You see, after McQueary told “Joe Pa” about the rape, PSU suspended McQueary and fired him in retaliation for going beyond Joe Pa about the showering incident. What a disgusting lot of people in higher education.
Campus crimes can be viewed by going here: http://ope.ed.gov/campussafety/#/ You can search by institution. If you look at PSU, you will see the main campus where Sandusky roamed had 56 and 17 reports of forcible sex offenses in 2012 and 2013, respectively, and 12 reports of rape in 2014.
In yet another shameful act, former PSU football players have petitioned their alma mater (I presume they all graduated) to restore the bronze statue of Coach Joe Paterno to the football stadium, which was removed shortly after Sandusky’s indictment. David Clohessy, Director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, has responded, “Shame on the Penn State alums who put their idolatry of one coach over the safety of kids and the healing of victims.”
