Sandusky hearing to address pretrial info release

[March 12, 2012]  STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) -- Pennsylvania state prosecutors and Jerry Sandusky's lawyers will appear in a central Pennsylvania courtroom Monday morning to argue before a judge about how much information the former Penn State coach should get in advance of his trial on child sexual abuse charges.

The topic of the hearing in the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte is the "bill of particulars" about the 10 purported victims that Sandusky was given by the attorney general's office two weeks ago.

Defense attorney Joe Amendola has asked for more specific information about where and when alleged crimes occurred and the names of people who were present or nearby, saying they may help him develop defenses based on alibi, the statute of limitations, double jeopardy or some other grounds.

Sandusky, 68, does not plan to attend the hearing, Amendola said Friday.

Sandusky remains on home confinement in State College awaiting trial in mid-May on 52 criminal counts. He has denied the allegations.

For most of the boys that Sandusky is accused of abusing, prosecutors were only able to disclose an estimate or range of dates for when they occurred, and provide only a rough idea of how old they were. Two of them remain unidentified, they said.

Amendola said Friday that Sandusky's presence at the hearing before Judge John Cleland was not necessary, and Sandusky decided he will not to attend.

Prosecutors say Sandusky abused the boys at various locations, including his home and Penn State athletic facilities, meeting victims through The Second Mile, a charity for at-risk kids he founded in 1977.

[Associated Press; By MARK SCOLFORO]

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