Local Penn State alumni see long road ahead for school following Sandusky sentencing

The former assistant Penn State football coach was sentenced today to 30 to 60 years in prison.

For Hellertown resident and Penn State University alumnus Peter Kurecian, news of Jerry Sandusky's sentencing provided no sense of finality to the child sex abuse scandal that has rocked the Nittany Lion faithful for nearly a year.

"I don't believe it's the end," said Kurecian. "For Sandusky, it's the end. He's the one who caused the problem."

A Centre County judge this morning sentenced the former assistant Penn State football coach to 30 to 60 years in prison. In June, Sandusky was found guilty on 45 counts of child sex abuse, having molested 10 boys during a 15-year span.

At 68 years old, the minimum of at least 30 years carries the likelihood of a life sentence for Sandusky, who has maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings and plans on appealing his conviction.

Lehigh Valley lawyer and Penn State alumnus Josh Fulmer said he felt Sandusky's sentence, while "absolutely warranted," should have been doubled.

"I was actually surprised," said Fulmer, who unsuccessfully ran for a seat on the Penn State University Board of Trustees earlier this year. "I thought it was a little low. I thought the minimum was going to be 60 (years)."

Still, Fulmer said, the high probability that Sandusky will spend the rest of his life in prison is important to those he victimized.

"If this had been some minimum sentence, it would have been an injustice to them," said Fulmer.

Kurecian, a longtime season ticket holder, said that with pending trials awaiting former administrators Gary Schultz and Tim Curley, Sandusky's sentencing provided no real end in sight for the embattled university.

"I don't think it's done as far as the publicity that's going to come out on Penn State," Kurecian said.

Fulmer said he imagines there's still a long road ahead for the university, particularly in regards to the pending legal fate of both Curley and Schultz.

"I don't even think we've scratched the surface," said Fulmer.

But Palmer Township manager and Penn State alumnus Chris Christman said that while the university still undoubtedly faces scrutiny and obstacles, today's sentencing may provide the groundwork for restoring stability in Happy Valley.

"This provides some closure to this part of the trial process," he said. "Certainly he deserves the punishment he's receiving. Now it's time for Penn State to move on as a whole."

For Christman, Sandusky's punishment can provide some vindication to what has been a long, emotionally charged process.

"From my standpoint, seeing Jerry Sandusky spend the rest of his life in prison provides some comfort in knowing that the judicial system has worked," Christman said.
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