Alleged Victim's Letter Read After Sandusky Surprise

Reaction to Sandusky's last-minute decision ran the gamut from relief to outrage.

Attorneys for the alleged victims expressed everything from outrage to relief but every single one of them was surprised with the apparent last-minute decision by Jerry Sandusky's legal team to waive his preliminary hearing.

At least eight young men were prepared to get on the stand Tuesday and face Sandusky, the man they accuse of sexually abusing them when they were boys, in the courtroom.

An agreement was reportedly reached late Monday night that prosecutors would agree to not seek higher bail if more charges a brought against Sandusky if the former Penn State coach agreed to waive any future preliminary hearings, according to the Attorney General's office.

"I think they welcomed the opportunity to tell their story because they've been accused of lying," said Howard Janet, one of the attorneys. "And I think that Amendola [Sandusky's attorney] probably served his client well by avoiding the public, at least through your eyes, of seeing what these boys had to say."

Special Section: Penn State Child Sex Abuse Scandal

Janet's client is known by the grand jury as Victim 6. He was allegedly sexually assaulted in 1998 by Sandusky but despite a 100-page report by the police at that time, no charges were ever filed. Janet said after all these years, his client was more than ready to finally be heard and believed.

"Because it would have been very apparent as to who was credible and who wasn't," Janet said.

Ben Andreozzi represents a client the grand jury calls Victim No. 4. He would have been the first to testify. "He was scared to death of testifying initially. I mean I sat in a room with him for 45 minutes and he was shaken." 

After Sandusky waived the hearing, Victim No. 4 still wanted his voice to be heard and wrote this letter:

"I can't believe they put us through this until the last second, only to waive the hearing. I want to thank all the people who've shown support. Regardless of the decision to waive the hearing, nothing has changed. I still will stand my ground, testify and speak the truth."

There was a lot of speculation about Sandusky's last-minute decision to waive his hearing. Many of the attorneys felt Sandusky's attorney -- who spoke for an hour -- just wanted to make sure all the media stuck around for a big press conference. 

"My guess, and I don't have any concrete knowledge, is that this is a prelude to a plea deal," said attorney Slade McLaughlin.

Sandusky's team said there will be no plea deal.

Prosecutors said they were prepared to present a strong preliminary case Tuesday, but said they were happy that the alleged victims will only have to testify once now at the trial.

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