A jury took less than two days to find Jerry Sandusky guilty of 45 of 48 counts of child sexual abuse, but the judge will need substantially more time to decide his punishment.
Judge John Cleland ordered a presentencing report, which will take anywhere from one to two months to complete.
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During that time, Sandusky will be examined by the state Sexual Offenders Assessment Board to decide if he should be treated as a sexually violent predator, and prosecutors could ask the judge for a hearing.
The judge determines whether someone is a sexually violent predator — it carries stiffer reporting and treatment requirements once someone is out of prison — and can use information from the board’s investigation in a sentencing decision.
If he’s sentenced to state prison — which appears to be certain in this case — then Sandusky will be transferred to Camp Hill, in south-central Pennsylvania, which has 3,000 to 4,000 inmates, about 1,000 of whom are held temporarily for classification.
New inmates are put through a battery of medical, dental, psychiatric, psychological, vocational and educational testing, according to Department of Corrections spokeswoman Sue Bensinger, who spoke generally about a male inmate convicted in Centre County and not of Sandusky’s case in particular.
He would then be placed in a state prison based on his treatment plan and the available beds. Sex offenders must undergo mandatory treatment programs, she said. A judge can request placement near an inmate’s home, but the department cannot necessarily honor those requests, she said.
Age is not a factor in the placement of Sandusky, 68, but any medical conditions could be. Inmates from 18 to 79 are housed in general populations, although older inmates may be put in lower bunks and have other handicap accommodations, she said. The majority of state facilities have infirmaries.
Sandusky could still face a flurry of potential civil lawsuits from his accusers.
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