11-14-2011, 08:08 PM
By Associated Press, Updated: Monday, November 14, 6:11 PM
PITTSBURGH — The youth charity at the center of the child sex-abuse charges against former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky received donations in recent years from hundreds of corporations, community groups and individuals — including the judge who arraigned Sandusky earlier this month and Penn State itself.
On Monday, The Second Mile’s president resigned, saying he hoped his departure would help restore faith in its mission. The group also announced it had hired Philadelphia’s longtime district attorney as its new general counsel.
Jack Raykovitz, a practicing psychologist, had led the group, which was founded by Sandusky in 1977, for 28 years.
Raykovitz had testified before the grand jury that recommended indicting Sandusky on child abuse charges. The panel said Sandusky found his victims through the charity’s programs.
The grand jury report called Sandusky the charity’s primary fundraiser, and The Second Mile’s annual reports show that some donations came from entities now involved in the scandal.
Penn State itself donated money even after high-ranking university officials were told that Sandusky had been seen sexually assaulting a boy on campus. Penn State donated between $1,000 and $1,999 to The Second Mile in 2009, and its Altoona campus donated between $2,000 and $4,999 that same year.
Another donor was State College District Judge Leslie A. Dutchcot, who set Sandusky’s bail earlier this month. She and her husband donated between $500 and $999 to The Second Mile in 2009, and she volunteered for the group, according to annual reports and her website.
The judge set bail for Sandusky at $100,000 unsecured — meaning he did not have to post collateral to be freed but would have to post $100,000 if he ever failed to show up for a hearing.
Dutchcot did not immediately respond to a question on whether she will recuse herself from the case because of those past ties to The Second Mile. She has removed the mention of The Second Mile from her website.
Major companies and their foundations also have given to The Second Mile. Between 2008 and 2010, the Bank of America Charitable Foundation, Highmark Foundation, The Hershey Company and State Farm Companies Foundation all gave $50,000 or more to the charity.
Other donors included U.S. Steel Corp., the University of Pittsburgh, The Pepsi Bottling Group, Frito-Lay, the Pa. School Counselors Association, local Wal-Marts and newspapers.
Raykovitz said in a statement Monday that he hopes his resignation would mark the beginning of a “restoration of faith in the community of volunteers and staff” at The Second Mile.
Tax forms indicate that Raykovitz’s wife, Katherine Genovese, was executive vice president of The Second Mile. She has been with the group since 1984. It’s not clear if she still works at the charity, as the staff biography page has been removed from the website.
According to a 2009 tax return, Raykovitz received about $133,000 from The Second Mile that year and Genovese received about $100,000.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/pre...sports_pop
PITTSBURGH — The youth charity at the center of the child sex-abuse charges against former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky received donations in recent years from hundreds of corporations, community groups and individuals — including the judge who arraigned Sandusky earlier this month and Penn State itself.
On Monday, The Second Mile’s president resigned, saying he hoped his departure would help restore faith in its mission. The group also announced it had hired Philadelphia’s longtime district attorney as its new general counsel.
Jack Raykovitz, a practicing psychologist, had led the group, which was founded by Sandusky in 1977, for 28 years.
Raykovitz had testified before the grand jury that recommended indicting Sandusky on child abuse charges. The panel said Sandusky found his victims through the charity’s programs.
The grand jury report called Sandusky the charity’s primary fundraiser, and The Second Mile’s annual reports show that some donations came from entities now involved in the scandal.
Penn State itself donated money even after high-ranking university officials were told that Sandusky had been seen sexually assaulting a boy on campus. Penn State donated between $1,000 and $1,999 to The Second Mile in 2009, and its Altoona campus donated between $2,000 and $4,999 that same year.
Another donor was State College District Judge Leslie A. Dutchcot, who set Sandusky’s bail earlier this month. She and her husband donated between $500 and $999 to The Second Mile in 2009, and she volunteered for the group, according to annual reports and her website.
The judge set bail for Sandusky at $100,000 unsecured — meaning he did not have to post collateral to be freed but would have to post $100,000 if he ever failed to show up for a hearing.
Dutchcot did not immediately respond to a question on whether she will recuse herself from the case because of those past ties to The Second Mile. She has removed the mention of The Second Mile from her website.
Major companies and their foundations also have given to The Second Mile. Between 2008 and 2010, the Bank of America Charitable Foundation, Highmark Foundation, The Hershey Company and State Farm Companies Foundation all gave $50,000 or more to the charity.
Other donors included U.S. Steel Corp., the University of Pittsburgh, The Pepsi Bottling Group, Frito-Lay, the Pa. School Counselors Association, local Wal-Marts and newspapers.
Raykovitz said in a statement Monday that he hopes his resignation would mark the beginning of a “restoration of faith in the community of volunteers and staff” at The Second Mile.
Tax forms indicate that Raykovitz’s wife, Katherine Genovese, was executive vice president of The Second Mile. She has been with the group since 1984. It’s not clear if she still works at the charity, as the staff biography page has been removed from the website.
According to a 2009 tax return, Raykovitz received about $133,000 from The Second Mile that year and Genovese received about $100,000.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/pre...sports_pop