Jerry Sandusky verdict: Guilty on 45 counts of child sex abuse

The jury in the child sex abuse trial of former Penn State University football coach Jerry Sandusky has found him guilty on 45 of the 48 counts of abuse he was facing.  

Sandusky now faces a maximum sentence of 442 years in prison.

The crowd gathered outside the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania erupted in cheers after the jury announced guilty verdict after guilty verdict. Sandusky was led from the courtroom in handcuffs.  

Jurors reached the verdict after two days of deliberations.Sandusky, 68, was facing 48 counts of abuse of 10 boys over a 15-year period in a case that stunned the university, refocused attention on the issue of child sexual abuse in the United States and led to the firing of Penn State President Graham Spanier and legendary head football coach Joe Paterno.

Meanwhile, as jurors in the child sex abuse trial of Jerry Sandusky worked into the night to reach a verdict on Friday, his lawyer predicted the outcome, telling reporters he would be shocked if the one-time Penn State assistant football coach was acquitted of all charges.

“I would die of a heart attack – shocked – if he was acquitted on all of the charges,” Joe Amendola told reporters awaiting the verdict in the courtroom, despite a standing gag order for the attorneys in the case.

Amendola’s off-the-cuff remark was the latest of several quips he made to reporters covering the trial this week. Previously he compared the trial to a TV soap opera, which earned him a trip to Judge John Cleland’s chambers.

Emerging from his meeting with Cleland, Amendola made a zipping motion at his mouth and said Cleland had told him: “Joe, you’re going to the prayer corner.”