Freeh report finds Second Mile officials concluded shower sighting a 'non-incident'

Published: July 12, 2012 

In 2001, Penn State officials discussed a suspicious sighting of Jerry Sandusky naked in a shower with a boy.

But the leadership of the charity Sandusky started for troubled children concluded the account was a “non-incident.”

That’s according to the Freeh report, the result of the internal investigation into Penn State that was released on Thursday.

While the 267-page document largely focuses on Penn State’s handling of Sandusky and mistakes made, it mentions how The Second Mile handled the 2001 report — something that’s gone unknown since the scandal broke in November.

According to the timeline in the report from Louis Freeh, former athletic director Tim Curley met with Raykovitz on March 19, 2001, and “shared the information we had with him,” regarding the report from former assistant coach Mike McQueary that Sandusky abused a boy in the shower.

It continues that the charity’s leadership took no further action.

The Freeh report said Raykovitz told two Second Mile “trustees” about the shower incident, but those two were not identified. Further, the Freeh report doesn’t say how it came to learn that information, other than Freeh saying some Second Mile people did grant interviews while many turned them down.

David Woodle, the charity’s interim CEO, declined to address that information when contacted by the Centre Daily Times on Thursday. He issued the following statement:

“The Freeh report was primarily focused on Penn State operations and therefore it would be inappropriate for us to make any broad comments.

“However we did cooperate with the investigation team and based on an initial review of the report we have nothing to add to the specific statements regarding The Second Mile.”

Sandusky met boys he was convicted of abusing through The Second Mile. He awaits sentencing in jail.

The report also says the Raykovitz met with Sandusky and told him he was no longer permitted to take children on campus, to which Sandusky replied that the prohibition applied only to the locker rooms.

In a statement, Andrew Shubin and Justine Andronici, attorneys for Sandusky Victims 3, 7, 10 and Sandusky’s son Matt Sandusky, said it’s clear Sandusky was abusing boys before 1998.

“We intend to demonstrate that Penn State and The Second Mile were aware of the abuse decades earlier and failed to take action to stop it,” they said in the statement.

Jessica VanderKolk can be reached at 235-3910 or jvanderk@centredaily.com. Follow her on Twitter @jVanReporter. Mike Dawson can be reached at 231-4616 or mdawson@centredaily.com. Follow him on Twitter @MikeDawsonCDT.

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