Penn State Fined 'Historic' $2.4M For Mishandling Sexual Abuse Cases

The U.S. Department of Education is fining Penn State University for its mishandling of sex crimes connected to the Jerry Sandusky case, the agency announced Thursday. The $2.4 million penalty is the largest fine ever imposed on a university for failing to comply with a law that requires prompt disclosure of campus crimes.

“For colleges and universities to be safe spaces for learning and self-development, institutions must ensure student safety – a part of which is being transparent about incidents on their campuses. Disclosing this information is the law,” U.S. Education Under Secretary Ted Mitchell said in a statement Thursday. “When we determine that an institution is not upholding this obligation, then there must be consequences.”

The law in question is the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Police and Campus Crime Statistics Act. Officials investigated the university for the period from 1998 to 2011, covering the timeline of allegations of sexual abuse levied against Sandusky.

The investigation revealed that the university was guilty of eleven different kinds of violations. A fine was imposed for each violation. The greatest violation was "failure to properly classify reported incidents and disclose crime statistics from 2008-2011." That fine alone was $2,167,500.

Penn State said that they had received the report on Thursday and were in the process of reviewing it.

"While regrettably we cannot change the past, today the University has been recognized for significantly strengthening our programs since 2011," the school said in a statement. "The safety and security of our University community is a top priority and we are dedicated to full compliance with the Clery Act and the Drug Free Schools and Communities Act."

The penalty against Penn State dwarfs the previous record fine under the Clery Act, which was $357,000 against Eastern Michigan University in 2007.

Patch file photo.