5 day forecast
Pennsylvania AG names former prosecutor to review Sandusky case
Share with others:
HARRISBURG -- Attorney General Kathleen Kane has appointed a former federal prosecutor to review how investigators -- while under the direction of Gov. Tom Corbett -- handled the Sandusky child abuse case.
Ms. Kane, a Democrat who took office last month, made reviewing the attorney general's investigation of the former Penn State University assistant football coach a central pledge of her campaign.
Ms. Kane appointed H. Geoffrey Moulton Jr., who previously worked as a federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and was chief counsel to U.S. Sen. Ted Kaufman, D-Delaware. Mr. Moulton has been an associate professor at Widener University School of Law since 1993.
In a statement, Ms. Kane said Mr. Moulton will help her office "in providing a comprehensive and independent examination of the facts surrounding the handling of the Sandusky investigation." She said his findings will be made public.
The case has remained a political trigger point more than seven months after a Centre County jury convicted Sandusky on 45 counts of child sexual abuse. In November, Ms. Kane, a former Lackawanna County assistant district attorney, easily became the first Democrat elected attorney general after focusing her campaign on a critique of how Mr. Corbett handled the investigation as attorney general.
A Quinnipiac University poll released last week found Pennsylvania voters disapprove by 50-26 percent how Mr. Corbett "has handled the Penn State situation over the last few years," though they approve 43-37 percent of the governor's lawsuit challenging the NCAA sanctions against Penn State.
Mr. Corbett has responded to criticisms by pointing to the success of the prosecution and saying he believed a case brought with a single victim would not have convicted Sandusky.
Mr. Moulton will report directly to the attorney general. Ellen Mellody, a spokeswoman for Ms. Kane, said Mr. Moulton will review the case to answer questions about the length of the investigation, the use of a grand jury and the allotment of dedicated resources.
"Mr. Moulton will be taking an independent, fresh, thorough and comprehensive examination of the facts surrounding the Sandusky investigation," she said. "We're going to look at those facts to ensure the office is deploying best practices."
Ms. Mellody said the office would not make Mr. Moulton available for interviews.
First Published February 4, 2013 4:29 pm
