Imprisoned child molester Jerry Sandusky told a court Tuesday that he deserves his pension from Penn State and that his convictions should not keep his wife from benefiting from his $,4900-a-month earnings.
Sandusky, a former assistant football coach for the university, was sentenced in October 2012 to 30 to 60 years in prison on 45 counts of child sexual abuse. The State Employees’ Retirement System that oversees his pension payout ruled that his conviction came under the Pennsylvania Public Employee Pension Forfeiture Act and cut off his wife Dottie from the funds, the New York Post reported.
But Sandusky argued in a court hearing that he was technically not a state employee at the time of his conviction, and therefore, the state could not cite that forfeiture law to halt his pension.
The court proceeding took place at State Employees’ Retirement System headquarters in Harrisburg, with Sandusky contributing three hours worth of testimony by video-link from his jail cell in southwestern Pennsylvania, the Post reported. His wife was physically present in the hearing room.
Legal officials said it could take several days for the matter to be decided.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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