This browser does not support the Video element.
BELLEFONTE, Pa. - Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky will be back in court next month, as one of his accusers has allegedly taken back his claims that the coach sexually abused him when he was a child, according to court documents.
Sandusky accuser recants claims of sexual abuse
What we know:
According to court documents obtained by FOX 29, a Centre County court has granted Sandusky an evidentiary hearing related to his petition for a new trial.
That hearing will focus on one of Sandusky's alleged victims, identified as "R.R.," recanting his testimony claiming that Sandusky had sexually abused him when he was 10 years old.
Sandusky's attorneys say R.R. submitted an affidavit in June 2025, taking back the claims.
Court documents detail that R.R. claimed "he was coached extensively and asked to revisit and reframe his allegations," and that he "was misled repeatedly during the [testimony] process."
Dig deeper:
While Sandusky's legal team has made other claims in their efforts for a new trial, including prosecutor misconduct and witness handling, September's hearing will focus only on R.R.'s new claims.
Sandusky's legal team plans to present testimony from R.R. himself, as well as R.R.'s estranged wife Jasmine Rittmeyer, private investigator Frank Parlato and trial prosecutor Frank Fina.
Attorneys for the state are petitioning to limit their testimony, saying that any claims not explicitly related to the recantation contain "irrelevant and/or inadmissible evidence."
Jerry Sandusky's conviction, sentence
The backstory:
Sandusky was convicted in 2012 of 45 counts of child sexual abuse, after eight men testified that Sandusky had sexually abused them as children, and sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison. He was resentenced in 2019.
The former Penn State coach has maintained his innocence.
What we don't know:
The exact details of R.R.'s recantation are not clear.
What's next:
Sandusky's evidentiary hearing is scheduled for Sept. 8, 2026, in Bellefonte.
The Source: Information in this story is from court documents, including a scheduling order for Jerry Sandusky's Sept. 8 evidentiary hearing, issued on Aug. 27, 2026, an amendment to Sandusky's Post-Conviction Relief Act petition filed on June 17, 2026, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's motion in limine, filed on July 6, 2026.