Dive Brief:
- Penn State announced Monday settlements that will see 26 victims in the Jerry Sandusky sexual abuse scandal receive $59.7 million.
- Confidentiality agreements are part of the settlements, which will be completely finalized in a few weeks.
- One lawyer in the case says he has three move victims he has yet to present due to it not being "a good time" in their treatment, and Penn State has rejected some of six other claims as being without merit.
Dive Insight:
The scandal involving former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky broke two years ago and continues to haunt Penn State. These settlements are being heralded by university President Rodney Erickson as "another step forward in the healing process for those hurt by Mr. Sandusky, and another step forward for Penn State." Indeed, they do put the school one step closer to moving beyond this whole sordid ordeal, but at a price. The settlement money cannot come from student tuition, taxpayer funds or donations, and what isn't covered by insurance is set to come from interest collected on loans made by the school.