McQueary tells PSU wideouts he's out as coach and in "protective custody"

[Are_grits_groceries]

McQueary tells PSU wideouts he's out as coach and in "protective custody"

Penn State's deposed receivers coach Mike McQueary, today placed on what the school called "administrative leave," moments ago told his receivers on a brief conference call that he was in "protective custody" at a secluded location not in State College.

McQueary, witness to the alleged sexual assault of a 10-year-old boy in 2002 by Jerry Sandusky, has been the subject of physical threats. He is the key subject in further investigation into the scandal and potentially could be the single most important trial witness.

On Friday afternoon, according to two team sources, new receivers coach Kermit Buggs gathered his players in a room at the PSU football complex and allowed them to talk with McQueary on a speaker phone.

During a brief and emotional conversation, McQueary told them, “I wanted to let you guys know I'm not your coach anymore. I'm done.”

When players asked, "Coach, where are you? Can we see you?" McQueary responded, “No, I'm actually in protective custody. I'm not in State College.”
http://blog.pennlive.com/davidjones/2011/11/mcqueary_tells_psu_wideouts_he.html

What's next? This won't end for a long time.

[notadmblnd]

1. I wonder why he needs protection?

[ProgressiveProfessor]

3. Apparently there have been credible threats made against him

and the police are protecting him...for now.

[alphafemale]

6. My guess is that it is because he is one of the key witnesses.

Otherwise you'd here of others involved getting death threats.

[NutmegYankee]

10. Some blame him for the firing of Paterno. nt

[proud2BlibKansan]

22. I'm wondering why he did so little to protect a young boy

[Skittles]

36. he SEES a man RAPING a ten year old - and LEAVES

calls his dad - and the next day they decide to contact someone AT THE SCHOOL? WTF - this guy was 28 years old at the time

[rainbow4321]

45. Reported tonight that the threats are because he reported what he saw

In other words...the threat is not from the victims' supporters, but from university supporters who are pissed that he reported what he saw instead of keeping it to himself.

How fucked up is THAT???


Hell, look at that DA (or whatever job the guy had) who "disappeared" a few years ago. No doubt that is in the mind of everyone involved in this horror given that it has never been proved if he killed himself or was made to "disappear".

[slutticus]

55. Probably the same reason Ray Gricar should have been protected

Look it up.

[seabeyond]

58. really? lol. you wonder? he dared to tarnish the hero by reporting a rape of a kid. nt

[notadmblnd]

63. No, it was a facetious question

I wanted to see what sort of replies I got. So far, there's only a couple of posters that are thinking along the same line as I'm thinking.

[seabeyond]

66. ok. good to know. nt

[rocktivity]

70. Well, that's the irony

Either it's because he didn't stop the assault, because he didn't tell his side of the story when he realized it was going to get hushed up, or because he got St. Joe Paterno into so much "trouble."

:crazy:
rocktivity

[ProgressiveProfessor]

2. He career as a football coach is gone forever at this point

not just at PSU. Not suggesting sympathy, but unlike JoePA who is retiring wealthy, this guy is out in the cold with nothing.

[Ohio Joe]

9. Good

I also hope the prosecutors are taking a good look at Paterno being on the board of TSM and still saying nothing. If the trips out of state are true as well, they should be looked at for further prosecution. At the very least, I hope they all end up out in the cold from lawsuits. I have zero sympathy for any of these assholes.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

23. Its a good bet the JoePAs assets are safe

At his age, the same things that make for good estate planning tend to keep you assets out of reach of lawsuits.

The receiver coach has nothing.

The higher ups may have a little and it will be much less after the criminal proceedings.

[KamaAina]

20. JoePa may be wealthy now

but wait until the civil suits hit the fan.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

24. Same things done for estate planning also protect assets in civil suits

JoePA is 83. Have to think that kind of stuff was taken care of years ago.

[riderinthestorm]

4. Grits, I have a deeply personal question. Do you think McQueary is a victim of sexual assault?

You don't have to answer but you posted such a wonderful OP about your own history I just have to ask you if you think maybe McQueary is a victim of sexual assault himself?

Perhaps even by Sandusky? McQueary grew up in the area, a promising football star. Perhaps even mentored by the Penn state league in the youth leagues. I'm wondering if that would explain the "freezing up", and the first call being to Dad. It might even explain why he's been found to be a very credible witness by the Grand Jury (and not criminal). And it would certainly explain why Penn State hasn't already fired him...

[Are_grits_groceries]

8. I thought about that and

I think it's possible. That would somewhat explain his actions. His mind probably melted and he had a flashback. It might have literally been impossible for him to act because his brain shut down.

[riderinthestorm]

13. Thanks.

:hug:

I am just trying to understand how he could have just walked away. Combining that with a phone call to Dad just keeps kicking around in my brain. The fact that Penn State is now protecting him (and hasn't fired him) is ringing my alarm bells now.

Thanks again for "going there" and lending some perspective.

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

56. This theory seems plausible to me also.

[OneGrassRoot]

27. I posted that thought in your touching OP....

That was my theory, trying to understand how he could not act...that he was traumatized himself.

Then I heard about a janitor witnessing another similar atrocity who also didn't speak up, so...I no longer no what to think...or feel.

:shrug:

[JohnnyLib2]

30. Thanks again for your perspective--and guts.

[ehrnst]

11. My mother was the victim of sexual assault as a child by a family friend

While her experience is certainly not representative of everyones - she felt that she could never tell her parents.

If indeed McQueary felt that he could tell his father about another child being molested by Sandusky, why would he not feel that he could have told his father about his own molestation?

No, I am not a psychologist. No, I am not saying that it is unlikely that McQueary was Sandusky's victim as well - but why the silence from his father and him if indeed there was a history of molestation by Sandusky?

[riderinthestorm]

17. Maybe he never told his dad until that night? I'm not trying to make excuses

and this would be pretty wild if it's true.

I volunteer at a rape crisis center (which is attached to our local women's shelter), and the PTSD lingers for a very, very long time from sexual assault. There's a lot of interesting behavior by McQueary during that time, and especially now from Penn State in regards to this man. It's ringing my bells he may be a victim/survivor.... I couldn't believe the grand jury didn't find him criminal. He certainly did nothing to stop the assault - (I'm not a lawyer) but that action alone smells of criminality yet, he's the "star" witness and now being protected by Penn State.

Something very odd here.

[beac]

32. Or maybe he was promised immunity from prosecution in return for his testimony.

Or maybe he knew reporting it would end his promising career in college football (and he'll be charged at a later date.)*

I think either of these scenarios could explain his behavior.

Penn State has put him on admin leave, which is rarely a sign that your employer plans to back you all the way.

By all accounts, Sandusky preyed on underprivileged kids from his charity over whom he could have complete control. I think it's unlikely that, will an infinite pool of victims like that, Saudusky would have risked branching out to assault his rich neighbor's kid.


*ETA: or maybe nothing he did or didn't do is legally actionable, despite being morally reprehensible


*E(again)TA: or maybe the only decent thing he did in this whole affair is not lie in front of the grand jury. Too little, too late.

[Are_grits_groceries]

18. There is still guilt and a stigma attached

for a lot of people. It is especially true for males. His Dad may have not wanted to take on Sandusky and Paterno. In addition, he didn't want his son labelled as someone who was abused.

Yes, believe it or not. Some parents wold rather stay silent than beat the shit out of the molester. Abuse is an underreported crime. That is especially true if the abuser is family or close friend.

[badhair77]

31. I was in my late 40s till I could talk about my abuse.

Even now it's limited to a small circle of friends and that's after a lot of therapy. I'm thankful my abuser is dead so I don't have to take it any farther.

[OKNancy]

19. that would sure explain a lot. n/t

[snagglepuss]

If so why wouldn't he or his family make that fact public?

[snagglepuss]

62. If so why wouldn't he or his family make that fact public?

[riderinthestorm]

65. Many rape victims suffer from such a severe storm of internal conflict over reporting.

You have no idea how conflicted that choice is. It's hard enough to get a victim (I'm going to stop using that term now and switch to the more appropriate term of "survivor, fyi), to go to a hospital, let alone getting the police involved.

Then you add another layer of media firestorm? Whoa. That just may be impossible for any survivor to cope with. Societal stigma against rape survivors is so deeply entrenched, most just feel so much shame. It can take decades to get to a place of peace about it.

IF McQueary is a rape survivor, he may have suppressed the memory for decades as well. He may never have told his parents. Whatever scene he saw may have trigged flashbacks that put him right back into at PTSD relapse.

We all like to think we'd be all brave and heroic but in fact, sexual abuse so thoroughly traumatizes the psyche, it skews one's sense of normality. McQueary may not want to reveal his own sexual abuse (if indeed it is true) because he may have never dealt with it, even yet. Add on the layer of hero worship the Penn Stage coaching staff seems to have elicited - whoa nelly, major meltdown.

[beac]

5. Nice he's being "protected"-- too bad he didn't think Sandusky's victims

deserved some protection.

This guy made his choice when he didn't report the crime to the PROPER authorities. He chose his career over the lives of young boys and now he will pay for that choice.

[RagAss]

15. Don't you get it yet? These fuckers will kill him...he turned on the cult !!!!

[Fumesucker]

16. I think that's what's happening..

[The Backlash Cometh]

21. The first post who gets it.

Look at how the Penn State students are acting. It's not easy doing the right thing. You have to be willing to give up all chances of a career, face ostracism, and death threats.

[beac]

25. Except he DIDN'T "do the right thing."

He saw a man who was NOT a Penn State employee at the time committing a felony and, instead of calling 911 (a.k.a. the PROPER authorities), he went home and called his dad. He then "reported" the incident to a man who had no authority to do anything about it (and who made his own WRONG choice not to report it to someone who did) and then attended functions with and for that pedophile for YEARS afterwards and worked with him to recruit players for Penn State.

McQueary is NO hero.



edited for typo

[RagAss]

26. My opinion...He would have been killed the same night if he called the police...

[beac]

29. And you base this on....

????????

:wtf:

If he feared he'd be "killed" for reporting it, he could have asked for protective custody THEN!

[The Backlash Cometh]

48. We base that on living amongst people who abuse their power all the time,

and the people around them that enable them.

[beac]

50. SO, why isn't he dead now?

They've known for days about his testimony and he only just now went into "protective custody."

Are you HONESTLY arguing that he didn't report Sandusky b/c he was afraid for his life????

Look, I won't argue with you that abuse of power is a HUGE problem in this country, but trying to claim he'd have been murdered on the same night he dialled 911 is beyond ridiculous.

[The Backlash Cometh]

52. He got absorbed by the culture.

It happens all too often that good people do bad things. That's what we've been experiencing over the last fifteen years. A steady decline in morality. And the people leading the charge were people who wrapped themselves in the flag, raised their bibles in the air and called everybody else unpatriotic.

Of course, you could do what I do and try to fight against it and live an ostracized life for fifteen years. There doesn't seem to be a happy solution.

And, yes, I would certainly believe that he would have faced a death threat or two back then. That was the peak of madness in this country.

[beac]

53. Maybe we are having a misunderstanding...

I thought you were agreeing w/RagAss's contention that McQueary would have been murdered that very night if he had dialed 911 instead of his dad.

I do agree that he got caught up in the culture and put Penn State football and his own interests before those of the child victim. I can't imagine the mental gymnastics required for him to live with himself for all these years. But then I, like you, find the "morality" of many of our fellow citizens hard to understand.

Had he stood up and reported the crime to the police rather than Paterno?

Death threats, certainly. Instant death, no way.

[The Backlash Cometh]

54. A university town does have its share of boss hogs.

Where I live, signs are everywhere that the university is trying to inflict itself into every aspect of life in the surrounding community. And this university is nothing the size of Penn State.

And do I trust our police station? Nope. Not at all.

[alcibiades_mystery]

57. Rag Ass is on some weirdo cult rap

Just let him spew and don't ask for reasons. You'll hear about Jonestown and other irrelevant nonsense.

[divineorder]

72. Given The Reaction

Are you sure this isn't a cult of sorts? Football coaches, even long-standing ones, get fired all the time, and the campus may be unhappy, but the reaction is usually a shrug or a farewell ceremony, and life goes on. Riots?

If you read what Penn State alumni say about Joe, he's like a father to them. He donated a library. He was a bastion of morality. I read an article where a girl was working in the school cafeteria and felt honored to serve his players food the other students didn't get. There was a march to his house by students. Indeed the first time they tried to fire him, it was the reaction of the students that got the Board to back down.

He told the Board that he was going to coach the next 4 games, then retire. In the meanwhile they were not to spend 30 seconds discussing his tenure. If that isn't arrogance, what is?

[beac]

28. The REASON he's in protective custody doesn't matter.

What matters is he did NOTHING to protect an innocent child and others became victims b/c he chose his career over their safety.

[badhair77]

33. The former DA is gone.

Sandusky may or may not have something to do with that. We need this guy to testify at the trial.

[Atman]

39. Actually, it is the former AG that has been missing for six years, not the DA.

Which is even more creepy...The AG out-ranks the DA.

[markpkessinger]

43. No, it's the DA of Centre County who has been missing...

... the former PA Attorney General was current Governor Tom Corbett.

[Atman]

71. Yes, my bad.

:hi:

[RobinA]

46. Why Would Sandusky

kill the AG? The one who didn't prosecute? It seems like half of central PA knew this guy was cozy with 10 year old boys. Why pick on the AG? And it doesn't seem like the man was even overly discrete. Boys at the Alamo Bowl, boys at Toftrees, boys in several lockerooms... Janitors, high school wrestling coaches, grad assistants, mothers, college administrators, college football staff. He would have had to off half of Centre County if he were going to go that route!

[markpkessinger]

41. I don't think it's that simple...

... Having grown up in that area, and having spoken with many people from the area in the wake of this scandal, to a person (whether or not they defend Paterno, and most do not defend him) the first question they raise is this: How does someone witness a crime like this in progress and not intervene to stop it? And if not that, how do you not go to the nearest phone and dial 9-1-1?

And indeed, I find myself asking the same question, even though I don't defend Paterno's or anyone else's failure to act. And I have a further question of my own. So, McQueary witnesses a 10 year-old boy being raped by a 60 year old retired coach in the Nittany Lions' shower facility. He meets his legal obligation under PA law and university policy by reporting to Paterno. Fine. His conscience is apparently satisfied (although I am at a loss as to exactly how) he has fulfilled his moral/ethical obligation as well. Fine. (Well, no, not "fine" exactly, but "fine" for the sake of argument only). How does someone then watch as absolutely nothing is done, while an institution covers up such a crime, and not only keep his mouth shut, but then accept a very good job on the coaching staff of that same institution?

There may well be some lunatics among the crowd who seek revenge solely because he reported the crime to Paterno in the first place, but I certainly haven't encountered that. People are angered that, just as Paterno could have and most certainly should have done more, they believe that st least as much, and possibly moreso, to the person who was the primary witness.

[beac]

49. He continued to associate with Sandusky in the years after witnessing the rape!

Described in court papers as distraught about witnessing the 2002 attack, separate newspaper accounts from the time indicate McQueary appeared in the months and years that followed in charity events that Sandusky also took part in, or were to benefit Sandusky's group The Second Mile.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iRixrq13pK87h_paTdiYhUrWcJHA?docId=ab1bf2846d9c4b529aa6ad1a8d6d7884

He's going to have a hard time explaining THAT away.

[alcibiades_mystery]

59. Curiouser and curiouser

[shanti]

60. your rhetorical question:

"How does someone then watch as absolutely nothing is done, while an institution covers up such a crime, and not only keep his mouth shut, but then accept a very good job on the coaching staff of that same institution?"

$$$$$$$$$$$$

[riderinthestorm]

61. I believe Mark that you are an attorney, I have a legal question for you if you don't mind.

To preface, I'm beginning to wonder if McQueary wasn't sexually assaulted as a child, perhaps even by Sandusky. He grew up around there, he was a promising young football star, surely he may have had contact with the Penn State people in youth leagues etc. so I don't discount it as a possibility.

Even more so, his "freezing" when he saw the rape is entirely within the range of possibility for someone with PTSD about the same kind of trauma. I always thought it was odd that he sought out his Dad. But if he had been sexually assaulted, he may have gone to a family member first.

And now we hear that Penn State is helping McQueary stay safe with protective custody (while Paterno and Sandusky are left hanging). Why is Penn State protecting McQueary? Why aren't they firing him? Is it because McQueary is also a victim?

So on to my legal question: the grand jury found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing with McQueary. If he really did witness the crime and walked away, isn't that some kind of crime in and of itself? Why didn't the grand jury find against McQueary? Instead they called him "very credible", and the "star witness". That sounds like someone with inside knowledge of the crime - like a victim. What do you think as someone in the profession?

[markpkessinger]

42. self-delete -- accidental duplicate

[RobinA]

44. How Do You

know he is being protected from "the cult"? Maybe the death threats are from people who think he should have called the police in the first place?

Anybody have any idea under what circumstances the Grand Jury was called? Maybe he belatedly went to the authorities. I know I don't know, do you?

[beac]

51. Here's a timeline:

http://aol.sportingnews.com/ncaa-football/feed/2011-11/penn-state-scandal/story/penn-state-timeline-jerry-sandusky-joe-paterno-mike-mcqueary#ixzz1dS20pN5n

And here's the critical piece:
"2009: The Pennsylvania attorney general begins an investigation when a Clinton County teen boy tells authorities that Sandusky has inappropriately touched him several times over a four-year period."


McQueary was called by the grand jury, but he never went to the authorities. He even socialized w/Sandusky after witnessing the rape:

"Described in court papers as distraught about witnessing the 2002 attack, unrelated local newspaper accounts from the time indicate McQueary appeared in the months and years that followed in charity events that Sandusky also took part in, or were to benefit Sandusky's group The Second Mile." http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iRixrq13pK87h_paTdiYhUrWcJHA?docId=ab1bf2846d9c4b529aa6ad1a8d6d7884

[Ruby the Liberal]

64. Victim 1's report started the GJ investigation late in 2008.

That brave kid kicked the lid off this whole mess.

McQ wasn't called to testify until December of 2010.

No idea how the GJ knew to investigate the 2002 incident.

[Fumesucker]

7. I don't think Sandusky is in protective custody..

Which leads me to wonder just who is threatening McQueary.

[Gin]

14. I saw someone threw a concrete block through sanduskys window

last night but they said nobody was home....

hope both he and McQuery (sp) are scared shitless..

[RagAss]

12. He needs protection like any other cult member who turned on the leader !!!!!!

[beac]

35. Or he needs protection like any other morally bankrupt person who did

nothing to protect a chld being raped.

Honestly, your ongoing attempt to paint McQueary as some kind of victim is baffling.

[Beowulf]

68. Yes!

I think it's helpful to think of this as a cult imploding.

[golddigger]

34. The other thing about this that is frightening is

nobody ask about this child or even knew who he was at the time. Sandusky could have murdered and buried this kid while McQueary and his dad were sitting at home worrying about McQreary's job if he came forward.
McQreary and his dad didn't give a rats ass about finding out if this kid made it out alive.

[beac]

37. Exactly. Attempts to paint him as some kind of whistle-blowing hero make me

:puke:.

[Skittles]

38. it's just all unbelievably SICK

this sports culture bullshit has got to stop :puke:

[Atman]

40. +100

.

[markpkessinger]

47. Just to be clear: McQueary was no whistleblower in all this...

McQueary's testimony only came forward in the course of the Grand Jury's investigation. Apart from that, not only did he keep his mouth shut from 2002 until the scandal broke, he accepted a very cushy full-time coaching position on Paterno's staff. I mean, even if he was satisfied that he had done everything he was morally and legally obliged to do (and that's already stretching credulity), how does he then witness the institutional cover up take place and still accept a job with the institution?

[tarheel8494]

67. He's a key witness, and not just to the original rape

It's not accurate to say he only came forward in the course of the grand jury investigation. If you've read the grand jury report (and, as difficult of a read as it is, I recommend it to anyone wanting to understand what's going on here), McQueary, considered highly credible, reported at the time what he witnessed in exact, non-watered down terms. The watering down and minimization of it happened as it moved up the line. Curley and Schultz were also given direct confirmation from McQueary on follow up of, again, what he witnessed in exact terms. That they denied McQueary told them this is the reason why the two of them also now face charges--perjury, failure to report -- that in this case may send them to prison.

I think McQueary is being protected not just because he's the key witness in the original heinous act, but also the key credible witness to the institutional minimization and whitewashing that went on. They need him badly for that, because that affects not just the case against Sandusky, but the disturbing cases that can be built against PSU folks (and possibly Second Mile folks) who conspired to do nothing. That part of the equation applies to all of the victims in the charges against Sandusky. And, if a civil suit is filed against PSU (which seems likely), he'll be a key witness for that as well.

The stakes are pretty high here.

Should we give the guy a parade? No. But he IS a key component in building necessary cases, both against Sandusky and PSU figures (Curley, Schultz so far...others will follow, perhaps Paterno, if it's shown that he was part of the minimization). And in building a case against the institutions who supported all of this crap.

So you don't get rid of the guy, because then you lose the investigation, which makes things even worse for victims, once again denied justice. Whether McQueary did the perfect things, he at least tried to do a right thing then, and to do the right things now. That counts for something. The high and mighty "I would have..." stuff is suspect. Most of us will, thank God, never be in the position of having to know what we'd actually do in that situation. I think he's the least ill-intended person of the bunch so far, and a really important part of seeing that justice is done to Sandusky, PSU, and perhaps some Second Mile folks.

[badhair77]

74. I believe you are correct.

My other concern is that there may be other witnesses out there but they might be reluctant to come forward now. They would be crucified for staying silent so long even though they could contribute to the case. The whole thing is ugly and I hope the victims get justice.

[Zoeisright]

69. You always know you're on the right side when you're getting

death threats. Because the thugs, the criminals, those who are for the status quo above all else, including justice and what is right, threaten violence when someone unmasks them.

[spanone]

73. yea, well fuck him. those kids needed some protective custody.

[maddezmom]

75. Rumors McQueary in protective custody untrue, father says

State College - Centre Daily Times

Posted: 7:13pm on Nov 11, 2011


John McQueary, father of Penn State assistant football coach Mike McQueary, denied his son was in protective custody Friday evening.

The Patriot News (Harrisburg) and other news outlets cited anonymous "team sources" as having heard McQueary on a phone call with members of the football team saying he has been put in protective custody outside of the State College area.

John McQueary said that was "Not true."

"I have heard from him recently and he is not under protective custody," he said.


Read more: http://www.centredaily.com/2011/11/11/2983145/rumors-mcqueary-in-protective.html#ixzz1dV3YS4U3