Originally Posted by Can't Know

If someone actually KNEW, I agree with you.

HOWEVER, a potentially slanderous report from someone else is NOT knowledge, it's unfounded allegation. Calling the cops at that point might be reckless or worse, you have to look at all of the circumstances.

As I said, if Jopa actually knew something and did nothing more than report it, it's reprehensible. But if not, there is no reason to repeat slanderous, damaging rumors, to the police or anyone else.

And that's the whole point. When you hear some slanderous thing about someone, how far are you expected to go with it? Apparently PS had some manner of procedure in place, and it seems Paterno followed through with that by forwarding what he had heard (again, not his own actual knowledge, just what he heard). Are you saying it was not reasonable for him to assume that the superiors would follow through to be sure it wasn't anything more than an ugly allegation? If nothing came from it, it seems he might have reasonably concluded that there was nothing to it beyond a vicious slur against a coach.