Penn State sex abuse case goes to jury
Penn State sex abuse case goes to jury
BELLEFONTE, Pa. — Jerry Sandusky was either a “predatory pedophile” who lured young boys to Penn State with gifts and access to big-time football, or a victim of now-grown men who lied to get a payout, attorneys argued Thursday as the former coach’s child sex abuse case went to a jury.
As jurors deliberated into the evening, one of Sandusky’s adopted sons came forward for the first time to say that his father had abused him. Matt Sandusky, 33, was prepared to testify for prosecutors at the trial, his attorneys said in a statement. The statement didn’t specify what the alleged abuse was.
The elder Sandusky, who faces life in prison if convicted of 48 counts of abuse of 10 boys over 15 years, was smiling and chuckling to himself as prosecutors wrapped up closing arguments. His wife, Dottie, leaned forward in her seat with a concerned look, resting her chin in her hands.
The former assistant football coach was arrested last November in a scandal that led to the firing of beloved head coach Joe Paterno, who died of cancer in January, and the departure of the university’s president.
The jury deliberated for more than eight hours Thursday before stopping at about 9:30 p.m.
Tulowitzki out at least six weeks
PHILADELPHIA — Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki had surgery on his left groin on Thursday to remove scar tissue and will miss at least six weeks.
Tulowitzki, who has been sidelined since May 30, was hitting .287 with eight homers and 27 RBIs in 47 games this season.
The Rockies have been reeling without their two-time All-Star in the lineup, losing 12 of 13 games entering Thursday’s contest against the Philadelphia Phillies.
“We know that he has peace of mind in knowing that what it was that he was dealing with is now fixed, and the time frame is not longer than initially anticipated after doing the tests and looking at MRIs and things like that,” Colorado manager Jim Tracy said. “We’re very encouraged in relation to the news that we got.”
Former QB Leaf to return to Texas soon
CANYON, Texas — Former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf could return to West Texas as early as next week to face a judge who could revoke his probation on drug-related charges.
Leaf pleaded guilty in Montana after his arrest for breaking into a house and illegally possessing painkillers. A Montana judge on Tuesday gave Leaf at least nine months in a drug treatment center.
Leaf received 10 years of probation in Texas in 2010 after pleading guilty to felony drug charges stemming from a burglary while he was a coach at West Texas A&M.
Randall County, Texas, District Attorney James Farren said Thursday that Leaf has waived extradition and could be picked up within a few days. Farren has indicated he will seek jail time for Leaf.
AG questions UH booster club status
HONOLULU — The state attorney general’s office is questioning whether University of Hawaii’s football booster club is a nonprofit.
The attorney general’s office says Na Koa Football Club is not registered as a nonprofit but solicits charitable contributions. The group has been asked to respond by June 28.
Na Koa Executive Director Kim Fujiuchi told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser the booster club operates under the UH Foundation, which is registered.
A booster club statewide telethon in April raised more than $65,000.
NFL retirees appeal dismissed lawsuit
MINNEAPOLIS — The retired players whose lawsuit against the NFL Players Association was dismissed last month have filed an appeal.
The group led by Hall of Fame defensive end Carl Eller filed Thursday with the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis.
U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson rejected their claims that the current players and their attorneys had no right to bargain with the NFL about retiree benefits last summer because they weren’t legally a union then. Nelson in her May 29 order denied their right to hundreds of millions of dollars in additional post-career benefits they argued they were cheated out of during lockout talks last year.
The retirees contended they were pushed out of negotiations to streamline the mediation process despite a court order for their inclusion.
Kemp wants to play in All-Star game
OAKLAND, Calif. — Dodgers slugger Matt Kemp still is optimistic about playing in the All-Star game next month in Kansas City — as long as he’s sure he will be healthy for the stretch run with NL West-leading Los Angeles.
Whether manager Don Mattingly and the medical staff give him the go-ahead is another question altogether. Kemp said he and Mattingly have discussed the All-Star game and will do so again.
“Of course I want to play, but I’ve got to do what’s best for the team,” Kemp said Thursday, before going through an extensive rehab workout of running on the field. “If I’m not ready, I can’t play, but as of right now I plan on playing. We’ve discussed some stuff. When that point comes, we’ll get to it and figure out what we’re going to do.”
Kemp, the runner-up for last year’s NL MVP and the National League’s All-Star votes leader with 3,322,009 in baseball’s latest count this week, has been on the disabled list for a second time this season since May 31 with the same strained left hamstring that first sidelined him from May 14-29.
Bartoli reaches semis at Eastbourne
EASTBOURNE, England — Marion Bartoli of France beat seventh-seeded Lucie Safarova 6-4, 6-2 on Thursday to reach the semifinals of the Eastbourne championships.
Bartoli next faces Austria’s Tamira Paszek, who defeated Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria 6-0, 6-4.
Klara Zakopalova of the Czech Republic also advanced, winning the last five games of a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia.
Rain forced the postponement of the men’s quarterfinals to Friday, when American Andy Roddick is scheduled to face Italian Fabio Fognini.
Also on Thursday, fifth-seeded German Angelique Kerber defeated Ekaterina Makarova of Russia 6-2, 6-4. Kerber will play Zakopalova in the semifinals.
No. 4 seed Bartoli was tied with Safarova in the first set before she used a backhand winner to break for a 5-4 lead. She dominated the second set, giving up just two points on her serve before wrapping up the match with an ace.
Ferrer makes Unicef Open semifinals
DEN BOSCH, Netherlands — David Ferrer routed Igor Sijsling of the Netherlands 6-0, 6-1 on Thursday to reach the Unicef Open semifinals.
The top-seeded Spaniard needed just 43 minutes to advance and next plays Frenchman Benoit Paire, who beat Ito Tatsuma of Japan 6-3, 7-5. Sijsling won only one game in front of his home crowd at the grass-court tournament.
Philipp Petzschner of Germany and Xavier Malisse of Belgium will meet in the other semifinal match.
On the women’s side, Kim Clijsters of Belgium beat the 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone 6-3, 7-6 (7) in a match that was held up by rain.
It was Clijsters’ third win of the tournament, providing a boost after she had been sidelined most of the season due to injuries. She next plays Urszula Radwanska of Poland, who defeated Sofia Arvidsson of Sweden, 6-2, 7-6 (3).
From wire sources