In this Nov. 9, 2011, file photo, former Penn State Coach Joe Paterno and his wife, Sue Paterno, stand on their porch to thank supporters gathered outside their home in State College, Pa. / AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. A new report commissioned by Joe Paterno's family challenges the conclusion by former FBI director Louis Freeh that the late Penn State coach conspired to conceal child sex abuse allegations against retired defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.
Joe Paterno, 1926-2012
An executive summary of the critique released Sunday said the "observations" of Paterno by Freeh in July were unfounded. The team reviewing Freeh's work included former U.S. Attorney General and Pennsylvania Governor Dick Thornburgh, who called the report fundamentally flawed and incomplete, resulting in a "rush to injustice."
The family released was what billed as an exhaustive response on paterno.com. It called Freeh's report a disservice to Paterno, the university community and Sandusky's victims.
Freeh's findings were cited by the NCAA when college sports' governing body levied unprecedented sanctions against the football program for the Sandusky scandal.
Last week, Sue Paterno started a campaign to repair husband Joe's battered image with a letter sent Friday to former Penn State players.
She wrote: "When the Freeh report was released last July, I was as shocked as anyone by the findings and by Mr. Freeh's extraordinary attack on Joe's character and integrity. I did not recognize the man Mr. Freeh described. I am here to tell you as definitively and forcefully as I know how that Mr. Freeh could not have been more wrong in his assessment of Joe."
Sue Paterno said neither Freeh's report, nor the NCAA's actions, should "close the book" on the scandal.
Joe Paterno's family issues its own abuse report
This article
Joe Paterno's family issues its own abuse report
can be opened in url
http://newsfreshman.blogspot.com/2013/02/joe-paterno-family-issues-its-own-abuse.html
Joe Paterno's family issues its own abuse report
