The results of this investigation should be cute. Are the three 'amigos' at fault for delay and cover-up 
, Joe ....? WOW, how will this affect CCS's up coming, future or never trial? I was under the impression that the Dep of Ed fined PSU or cleared PSU three or four years ago.
Federal investigators' findings in Sandusky case near release
Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky arrives at the Centre County Courthouse for an appeals hearing about whether he was improperly convicted four years ago, in Bellefonte, Pa. Friday, Aug. 12, 2016.
Photo by AP
Nearly five years after they began scouring Penn State records, federal investigators are close to releasing findings about the university's adherence to campus-safety laws in the years leading up to the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal.
Officials with the U.S. Department of Education “hope to have something to release on this in the next 10-14 days,” a spokesman told the Tribune-Review about the sweeping investigation of security measures implemented on the University Park campus before allegations of the former assistant football coach molesting boys broke publicly in November 2011.
A jury in June 2012 convicted Sandusky of sexually abusing 10 boys in and around Penn State facilities between 1998 and 2009. Federal investigators want to determine whether Penn State complied with the Clery Campus Safety and Security Act, a 1990 law that, among other things, requires colleges to establish policies and procedures for reporting crime and to issue timely warnings of danger on and around campuses.
Their goal: to determine whether allegations against Sandusky were reported as required and included in campus crime reports.
Ultimately, many wonder whether that might have halted the abuse years before 32 men came forward, claiming to have been victimized as youths by the former coach. To date, the school and its insurers have paid $93 million to settle their claims.
The Department of Education forwarded preliminary findings of its Clery investigation to Penn State in July 2013, and the investigation remains open as Sandusky appeals his criminal conviction, charges still loom against three top university administrators accused of failing to report allegations and at least five civil suits remain active.
Quick action commended
Penn State will not discuss any of its Clery responses until the Education Department releases its review, said Lawrence Lokman, the school's vice president for strategic communications.
But Penn State acted quickly after the scandal broke to beef up its campus safety program. Within weeks, the school hired a Clery compliance officer and instituted wide-ranging training programs for mandated reporters.
“Penn State, to the best of my knowledge, still has the most robust training and collection process in the country, and that is a direct result of Sandusky and the Clery investigation. And I give them credit for that,” said S. Daniel Carter, a campus safety consultant who has worked on Clery issues since the law's inception and testified before Congress.
Such comments bear witness to Penn State's efforts.
“We aspire to be a leader in Clery Act compliance and have significantly strengthened our programs since 2011,” Lokman said. “The university has multiple initiatives focused on fighting sexual assault and misconduct, including mandatory employee training and a universal hot line. We regularly review and analyze best practices, and incorporate our learnings into our operations and practices.”
Six-figure fines
Just what may be at stake for Penn State in the ongoing federal investigation remains unclear.
Federal records show the Education Department has never invoked the law's ultimate sanction of prohibiting a school from participating in federal student-aid programs.
The Clery Act, however, does allow fines of up to $27,500 for any violation at Penn State. The period under review spans 1998 to 2011.
“How many violations they may find is unknowable,” Carter said.
Penn State likely has spent the past three years answering issues referenced in the 2013 preliminary report, he said.
The department imposed six-figure fines against at least 11 schools over the past 16 years, a 2014 report showed. The Eastern Michigan University paid a record fine of $350,000 in 2008 for failing for 10 weeks to report a coed's death as a rape-murder.
For years, it was an open secret that compliance with the law's annual reporting requirements varied dramatically from one college to the next.
Experts in campus policing and security said that has changed over the past five years — due in part to publicity surrounding high-profile cases such as the Sandusky scandal and enhanced compliance efforts by the federal government.
“There has been a complete evolution from it being a statistical report of crimes that comes out of a police department to an all-encompassing report on policies and reports from all resources across campus,” said Randy Burba, president of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Agencies. “Campuses are much more taking the committee approach and making sure all departments are working together to comply with regulations and have an accurate and timely report produced every year.”
The Department of Education has beefed up its outreach to college law enforcement agencies, said Burba, chief of public safety at Chapman University in Orange, Calif.
At the same time, Carter said the agency added resources when it restructured in 2011 and that investigations have increased.
“The Clery Act compliance division has been as busy as they ever have been,” Carter said, adding that complex cases like Penn State's can require years to resolve.
Debra Erdley is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at 412-320-7996 or
, Joe ....? WOW, how will this affect CCS's up coming, future or never trial? I was under the impression that the Dep of Ed fined PSU or cleared PSU three or four years ago.Federal investigators' findings in Sandusky case near release
Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky arrives at the Centre County Courthouse for an appeals hearing about whether he was improperly convicted four years ago, in Bellefonte, Pa. Friday, Aug. 12, 2016.
Photo by AP
Nearly five years after they began scouring Penn State records, federal investigators are close to releasing findings about the university's adherence to campus-safety laws in the years leading up to the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal.
Officials with the U.S. Department of Education “hope to have something to release on this in the next 10-14 days,” a spokesman told the Tribune-Review about the sweeping investigation of security measures implemented on the University Park campus before allegations of the former assistant football coach molesting boys broke publicly in November 2011.
A jury in June 2012 convicted Sandusky of sexually abusing 10 boys in and around Penn State facilities between 1998 and 2009. Federal investigators want to determine whether Penn State complied with the Clery Campus Safety and Security Act, a 1990 law that, among other things, requires colleges to establish policies and procedures for reporting crime and to issue timely warnings of danger on and around campuses.
Their goal: to determine whether allegations against Sandusky were reported as required and included in campus crime reports.
Ultimately, many wonder whether that might have halted the abuse years before 32 men came forward, claiming to have been victimized as youths by the former coach. To date, the school and its insurers have paid $93 million to settle their claims.
The Department of Education forwarded preliminary findings of its Clery investigation to Penn State in July 2013, and the investigation remains open as Sandusky appeals his criminal conviction, charges still loom against three top university administrators accused of failing to report allegations and at least five civil suits remain active.
Quick action commended
Penn State will not discuss any of its Clery responses until the Education Department releases its review, said Lawrence Lokman, the school's vice president for strategic communications.
But Penn State acted quickly after the scandal broke to beef up its campus safety program. Within weeks, the school hired a Clery compliance officer and instituted wide-ranging training programs for mandated reporters.
“Penn State, to the best of my knowledge, still has the most robust training and collection process in the country, and that is a direct result of Sandusky and the Clery investigation. And I give them credit for that,” said S. Daniel Carter, a campus safety consultant who has worked on Clery issues since the law's inception and testified before Congress.
Such comments bear witness to Penn State's efforts.
“We aspire to be a leader in Clery Act compliance and have significantly strengthened our programs since 2011,” Lokman said. “The university has multiple initiatives focused on fighting sexual assault and misconduct, including mandatory employee training and a universal hot line. We regularly review and analyze best practices, and incorporate our learnings into our operations and practices.”
Six-figure fines
Just what may be at stake for Penn State in the ongoing federal investigation remains unclear.
Federal records show the Education Department has never invoked the law's ultimate sanction of prohibiting a school from participating in federal student-aid programs.
The Clery Act, however, does allow fines of up to $27,500 for any violation at Penn State. The period under review spans 1998 to 2011.
“How many violations they may find is unknowable,” Carter said.
Penn State likely has spent the past three years answering issues referenced in the 2013 preliminary report, he said.
The department imposed six-figure fines against at least 11 schools over the past 16 years, a 2014 report showed. The Eastern Michigan University paid a record fine of $350,000 in 2008 for failing for 10 weeks to report a coed's death as a rape-murder.
For years, it was an open secret that compliance with the law's annual reporting requirements varied dramatically from one college to the next.
Experts in campus policing and security said that has changed over the past five years — due in part to publicity surrounding high-profile cases such as the Sandusky scandal and enhanced compliance efforts by the federal government.
“There has been a complete evolution from it being a statistical report of crimes that comes out of a police department to an all-encompassing report on policies and reports from all resources across campus,” said Randy Burba, president of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Agencies. “Campuses are much more taking the committee approach and making sure all departments are working together to comply with regulations and have an accurate and timely report produced every year.”
The Department of Education has beefed up its outreach to college law enforcement agencies, said Burba, chief of public safety at Chapman University in Orange, Calif.
At the same time, Carter said the agency added resources when it restructured in 2011 and that investigations have increased.
“The Clery Act compliance division has been as busy as they ever have been,” Carter said, adding that complex cases like Penn State's can require years to resolve.
Debra Erdley is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at 412-320-7996 or
