Paterno's Tuesday press conference canceled

State College, PA – Penn State head football coach Joe Paterno's usual Tuesday press conference was canceled by the university as the school continues to deal with the shocking scandal involving the sexual child abuse charges against former Nittany Lions assistant Jerry Sandusky.

"Due to the on-going legal circumstances centered around the recent allegations and charges, we have determined that today's press conference cannot be held and will not be re-scheduled," the school's statement read.

According to the Patriot-News in central Pennsylvania, university president Graham Spanier made the decision without conferring with Paterno.

The legendary coach's normal discussions with the media about the Nittany Lions' upcoming game against Nebraska would have been secondary in the wake of this past weekend's allegations.

Sandusky, a longtime assistant under Paterno who retired in 1999, was arrested Saturday and charged with 40 counts of various sexual crimes -- some of which allegedly took place on the Penn State campus.

While Paterno is not regarded as a target of the ongoing investigation by the Pennsylvania Attorney General and state police, his knowledge of the alleged transgressions and actions in the aftermath have come under scrutiny.

Paterno was made aware of one of the incidents that took place in 2002 in the showers of Penn State's football building by a graduate assistant, said to be current assistant Mike McQueary. Paterno dutifully informed athletic director Tim Curley. However, the coach's involvement apparently ended there.

The charges against Sandusky include involuntary deviate sexual intercourse; aggravated indecent assault; unlawful contact with a minor; and endangering the welfare of a child.

Curley and Gary Schultz, who oversaw Penn State's police department and was also informed about the incident in 2002, were also charged by the Pennsylvania Attorney General with perjury and failure to report under the Child Protective Services Law. The attorney general's release this past weekend said the two men were charged because they took little action when confronted with Sandusky's alleged actions and lied about their knowledge of them.

Both Curley and Schultz stepped down from their positions with Penn State on Sunday night and both made court appearances on Monday. Lawyers for both proclaimed their clients' innocence and both were released on $75,000 unsecured bail.

Paterno did issue a statement late Sunday night.

"While I did what I was supposed to with the one charge brought to my attention, like anyone else involved I can't help but be deeply saddened these matters are alleged to have occurred," the statement said.

The grand jury's presentment found that eight young men were the targets of sexual advances or assaults by Sandusky, starting in 1994 and continuing through 2009.

Sandusky had operated a charitable organization for young people called The Second Mile and had unrestricted access to the Penn State football building and locker rooms as part of his retirement agreement.