With college football season about to kick off, Jerry Sandusky is back in the news. Yes, the Jerry Sandusky of Paterno and Penn State “fame.” We all thought we were done with this convicted child molester thanks to the 30-60 year sentence that was handed down in 2012 but alas, no. Just this week, Sandusky took the stand at a hearing in which he sought to have his conviction overturned or at least receive a new trial. Based on what you ask? In layman’s terms, he is arguing that his lawyer was so bad that it resulted in him being wrongly convicted and, at the very least, Jerry should have another chance to prove his innocence. These types of appeals, based on what is referred to as an ineffective assistance of counsel claim, are not easily won—even appeals based on lawyers who were sleeping during a trial have not been found to have been ineffective! So, Sandusky’s claim that his lawyer never really explained to him what it meant for him not to testify or that he gave him bad advice when he allowed him to be interviewed on camera by Bob Costas (Really? You were an assistant coach at a college football powerhouse for 30 years and you didn’t know the effect of an interview with a well-known sportscaster?) are not likely to sway the judge. The fact is judges generally defer to trial court findings. So, orange is definitely remaining the new black for you Jerry. No way you win this one.
