Disgraced Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky was convicted Friday of 45 counts of child sexual abuse.

The jury consisting of seven women and five men deliberated for a total of 20 hours, exonerating Sandusky of only three of the 48 charges. Sandusky had been accused of abusing ten boys over a period of 15 years. Charges included involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, indecent assault, unlawful contact with minors, corruption of minors and endangerment of a child.

Some of the males, who Sandusky met through his Second Mile charity for troubled youth, testified against him at trial, giving very graphic details of their encounters with the assistant coach. They stated that Sandusky began by giving them gifts, then gradually escalating from one inappropriate act to the next. The alleged sexual encounters took place in school locker rooms and in the basement of Sandusky’s home.

One of the most surprising developments of the case was when Sandusky’s adopted son, Matt, approached prosecutors and offered to give testimony against his father. While Matt had supported him until recently, he now states that Sandusky abused him as well as a youth. The prosecution did not call Matt to the stand, however.

After the jury finished reading the verdict, Sandusky was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs and was escorted to a waiting police car, which would transfer him to the local jail. He is scheduled for sentencing in 90 days. As Sandusky faces a minimum of 60 years in prison, he will spend the rest of his life behind bars.

“We can’t let the national focus that this case has brought upon child sexual abuse fade after these cameras are turned off,” stated Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly at a press conference following the reading of the verdict. “We have to continue to focus on child sexual abuse and to shine a bright light in those dark, dark places where the Jerry Sandusky’s of the world lurk — places which definitely exist in our society.”

“[Abused children] need our help; they need our support, and we as a society must not turn our back or close our eyes, or try to convince ourselves that it doesn’t exist, when it in fact does exist,” she added. “We can help the voices of victims be heard, and we can try and drive away the demons and the darkness, and lift the veil of secrecy that allows predators to hide and to operate in our midst.”

As Christian News Network reported earlier this week, Sandusky’s youth charity, The Second Mile, has lost nearly all support. The organization has asked the Court of Common Pleas of Center County to approve the transferal of the charity’s programs to a Christian outreach called Arrow Child and Family Ministries. It may be several months before a decision is released.

Sandusky was the assistant to former famed Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, who was fired when Sandusky’s crimes came to light. Paterno passed away this past January.

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