Paterno transfers house to wife for $1

STATE COLLEGE, Pa., Nov. 16 (UPI) -- Joe Paterno transferred full ownership of his house to his wife, leading some observers to speculate whether he did so to protect the asset in case of lawsuits.

The New York Times reported the former Penn State football coach transferred ownership of the home, valued at $594,484, to his wife, Sue, in July for $1 plus "love and affection."

The couple had purchased the home near the Penn State campus in 1969 for $58,000 and owned it jointly before the transfer.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported the move fueled speculation Paterno transferred ownership to protect the asset in case of lawsuits related to the Penn State child sex abuse scandal.

But Wick Sollers, a lawyer representing Paterno, told the Times the move was "one element" of a "multiyear estate-planning program" that had nothing to do with the scandal.

The Inquirer said Paterno also is eligible for a pension equivalent to the average of this three highest salaries -- $541,000 to $568,000 during the last three years.

Paterno was not charged but was fired last week amid criticism over his response to a graduate assistant's reporting he saw former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky sexually assaulting a boy in a locker room shower in 2002. Paterno reported the allegation to Athletic Director Tim Curley, but not to police.

Curley and University Vice President Gary Schultz were charged with perjury and failure to report child abuse.