Sports

Was Penn State Right to Remove Paterno Statue?

NCAA expected to hand down 'unprecedented' sanctions against college on Monday.

Penn State University officials decided Sunday to remove a bronze statue of late football coach Joe Paterno after a report by former FBI director Louis Freeh said Paterno knew about sexual assaults on young boys at the school, but took no action to inform authorities. 

The 900-pound sculpture was removed from the exterior of the Penn State Football Stadium and placed in a "secure location," according to a report on cnn.com.

Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky was found guilty on 45 counts of sexual assault earlier this month. A private investigation revealed Paterno knew about the crimes, but took no action to report them to authorities, after initially notifying school officials.

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According to the cnn.com report, University President Rodney Ericksen said, "I now believe that, contrary to its original intention, coach Paterno's statue has become a source of division and an obstacle to healing in our university and beyond."

Paterno died in January from a battle with lung cancer at the age of 85. He was fired by the university in November 2011 shortly after news of the Sandusky scandal was made public. He was an assistant and head coach at the school for 61 years.

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