Sandusky's Other Victims

The conviction of Jerry Sandusky on child sexual abuse charges brings a rightful close to an unhappy chapter in the lives of his victims, but it’s just the first chapter of a long story. There will likely be an appeal, and much more likely, civil litigation, and the victim pool will spread. I wonder what’s going to happen to Penn State University. Will the cover-up, apparently perpetrated by a few, result in the collapse of a respected institution, affecting students, faculty, employees, and in some way, an entire college town?

The good news, though unpleasant, is that thanks to cases like this and those involving the Catholic Church – and with special thanks to those willing to come forward to talk about what’s happened to them -- this form of abuse, which has been shrouded in shame and secrecy, is coming to the surface to be dealt with. One of the “victims” will be our complacency about it. There just isn’t any more room under the rug.

And we’re going to discover how common this sort of thing is. The most difficult point to grasp may be that while the predation involved in these cases is a crime, the mere predilection, while perverted, is not, if there's no overt action that follows. Some men who are subject to it have no victims – they realize what their problem is and seek help for it.

This goes back to what we might call brain wiring. Where does this urge come from? Is it caused by a traumatic sexual experience in childhood? Is there a genetic predisposition to it? What’s the solution for those who have it – treatment, castration, banishment for life to Devil’s Island, or exorcism? In his own way, is Jerry Sandusky himself, at least in some small measure, a victim?

Judgment is the easy part. The criminal justice system can deal effectively and appropriately, as it has in this case, with predatory behavior. Delving into the mystery of what makes human beings tick – especially at the wrong rhythm -- is a lot harder. But if there’s a cure, it’s that process that will help us discover it.