Jerry Sandusky trial: Judge refuses to dismiss charges

The judge overseeing former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky's child sex abuse trial rejected last-minute motions on Friday to dismiss the charges in the case.

Trial Judge John M. Cleland didn't explain his rationale behind the ruling in his brief, three-paragraph order filed in Centre County court, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.

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The order clears the way for Sandusky's trial to begin on Monday morning in Bellefonte, Pa. It is expected to last several weeks.

Sandusky's attorneys had wanted the 52 counts against him dismissed, arguing that some were too vague and that there was insufficient evidence to support the others, CNN reported.

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Sandusky, 68, a retired assistant Penn State football coach, is accused of sexually abusing 10 boys over a 15-year span, some of whom he met through a charity he created for underprivileged youth. He has consistently denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty, according to the AP.

A jury of seven women and five men was selected earlier this week, many of them with ties to Penn State, MSNBC reported.

Love letters that Sandusky wrote to one of his alleged victims will be read as testimony, and the jury will also be presented with gifts that one of the victims received as evidence.

Authorities allege that some of the abuse occurred on Penn State's campus, and University President Graham Spanier and head football coach Joe Paterno lost their jobs over their handling of the case.