Jerry Sandusky appeared in Centre County Court Tuesdaywhich included a recantation witness, in hopes of taking his effort for a new trial to a higher court
Sandusky agreed to withdraw a claim to the written recantation of Ryan Rittmeyer, one of the men who testified the former Penn State football assistant coach sexually abused him more than 25 years ago.
Before Sandusky’s lawyers filed the withdrawal motion, it was anticipated that Rittmeyer would give testimony concerning his written recantation of accusations against the former Penn State football assistant coach, who was convicted in 2012 of 45 counts of child sexual abuse and sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison. Six charges were attributable to Rittmeyer, then known as Victim 10, who testified Sandusky abused him on multiple occasions in 1998 and 1999.
Sandusky’s lawyers, unsatisfied with the court’s decision
Sandusky’s lawyers, unsatisfied with the court’s decision to not hear additional claims offered in an appeal last year, and its previous dismissals of Sandusky’s efforts for a new trial, withdrew the claim last week in hopes of seeking a higher court remedy, according to an investigator for Sandusky, Frank Parlato Jr.
Presiding special Judge Maureen Skerda questioned Sandusky Tuesday on his choice to withdraw. Sandusky, wearing a brown prison uniform with ‘DOC’ printed across the back and chest, appeared
A prosecutor then asked Sandusky if he wished to withdraw the recantation claim under the understanding that he could not offer the claim again in state or federal court.
Sandusky said he did and agreed to do so “under advice of counsel.”
In an interview with reporters following the hearing,
In an interview with reporters following the hearing, Sandusky’s attorney, Jerry Russo, said he was eager to explore other claims, including the accusation that prosecutors failed to provide counsel with exculpatory evidence before the trial.
Russo described the decision to pull Rittmeyer’s recantation as “strategy.”
“The courts disfavor recantation testimony,” Russo said, pointing to Pennsylvania case law precedents. “There’s no purpose litigating it here in state court.”
Sandusky’s wife, Dottie, who has maintained his innocence, attended the hearing in Centre County and spoke briefly with Russo afterwards.
If you believe Jerry Sandusky was fairly treated
“If you believe Jerry Sandusky was fairly treated by the court,” Russo said, “then you’re not going to hear what I have to say.”
“Read the record and you will understand why I believe he’s innocent,” Russo told ESPN. “That’s why I took this case.”
Rittmeyer swore in an affidavit that he did not have a clear memory of being sexually assaulted by Sandusky as a child, writing that investigators “repeatedly encouraged me to believe that Mr. Sandusky had molested me — despite my lack of clear or certain memory of any such conduct.” He said prosecutors assured him he would be compensated in subsequent civil proceedings.
The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office described the recantation as “highly suspect” but a spokesperson for the office declined to elaborate.
Source: www.espn.com
