HARRISBURG (KDKA) — Former Penn State president Graham Spanier is now facing charges in the child sex abuse scandal surrounding former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky.

The state’s attorney general says Spanier was part of a “conspiracy of silence” among several top university leaders.

“This was not a mistake by these men, it was not an oversight, it was not misjudgment on their part; this was a conspiracy of silence by top officials working to actively conceal the truth with total disregard to the children who were Sandusky’s victims,” said Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly.

And with that, the attorney general charged Spanier with perjury, endangering the welfare of children and conspiracy.

The counts are all felonies, which are punishable by up to seven years in jail and $15,000 in fines.

Also, investigators added new charges against former PSU athletic director Tim Curley and former PSU administrator Gary Schultz, claiming they all conspired together.

Handwritten notes from Schultz in 1998 referring to a victim who wasn’t believed until this year, emails from Curley including Spanier in the chain, and wording the attorney general sees as code language.

“Seemingly using words to try and mask the true meaning of the topic of the email,” Kelly said. “He refers to Sandusky as the individual or person, he refers to The Second Mile as the organization, he refers to the 1998 investigation as the first situation.”

Some of the material first was revealed in the Freeh Report.

KDKA’s Harold Hayes: “Did you find them to be helpful in this portion of your investigation?”

Kelly: “I think the simple answer to that is yes.”

Right now, Curley and Schultz are scheduled to go on trial in January on the previous charges, but prosecutors want to try all three together and that could delay the process.

RELATED LINKS:
Graham Spanier’s Attorneys Release Statement
Spanier Facing Charges In PSU Sex Abuse Case (11/1/12)
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