When Jerry Sandusky's bail was set at $100,000 unsecured, considerably more lenient than the prosecution's suggestion of $500,000 and monitoring, it raised a few eyebrows. Due to the terrible nature of the allegations contained in the grand jury indictment of Sandusky, it's understandable that many felt uncomfortable with the idea of him walking around freely without an ankle bracelet. Even more questions are about to be asked about the nature of that ruling.
On Sunday, Deadspin connected the dots and figured out that Judge Leslie Dutchcot, the judge who set Sandusky's bail, is a volunteer at Sandusky's charity The Second Mile. The 'unsecured' part of 'unsecured bail' means that Sandusky won't have to pay anything if he shows up to all of his required court appearances in a timely fashion.
Accusing Dutchcot of any kind of preferential treatment would be unfair, but surely as a volunteer at The Second Mile, she at least had some idea of who Jerry Sandusky was and that he was affiliated with the charity. Rescuing herself from judicial responsibilities in this case due to a possibility of a perceived conflict of interest probably would have been the best move.
For more on the Nittany Lions, visit Penn State blog Black Shoe Diaries. Follow all of SB Nation's coverage of the Jerry Sandusky investigation in our StoryStream.
2 comments
1
Comments
You know those movies where parched and sunburned guys are in the desert, and over every dune they see an oasis, but in reality, it’s just a mirage?
That’s what trying to link Sandusky’s bail to a Second Mile conspiracy equates to.
by smokybandit on Nov 13, 2011 6:39 PM EST reply actions
I don’t know about the Second Mile link but given the magnitude of the charges $100K seems low. Then again I don’t know anything about bail.
by Tractorr on Nov 13, 2011 9:36 PM EST up reply actions
Comments For This Post Are Closed