Jerry Sandusky plans to withdraw from a September 8 evidentiary hearing centered on an accuser’s recantation and instead seek relief in federal court, according to ESPN.

Sandusky’s attorneys are expected to file paperwork seeking to withdraw from the hearing. As of Thursday afternoon, no withdrawal motion or court order has been filed in the publicly available Centre County court records.

The hearing was scheduled after Ryan Rittmeyer, identified as Victim 10 during Sandusky’s 2012 trial, signed a 2025 affidavit challenging his previous testimony.

Rittmeyer testified in 2012 that Sandusky sexually assaulted him on multiple occasions beginning when he was a child. In the affidavit dated June 30, 2025, however, Rittmeyer claimed he had no “clear or certain” memory of sexual abuse when Pennsylvania State Police first interviewed him.

Rittmeyer also claimed investigators repeatedly encouraged him to reconsider his memories, and thus his eventual testimony was shaped by psychological and institutional pressure.

The Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General described Rittmeyer’s recantation as “highly suspect” earlier this week.

Sandusky’s legal team recently filed a 52-page amended Post-Conviction Relief Act petition seeking to broaden the scope of the September hearing. The petition raised allegations involving prosecutorial misconduct, changing accounts from accusers, and matters connected to later civil litigation.

Sandusky maintained his innocence in a recent interview with Chad Pradelli. He claimed that financial incentives and pressure from investigators influenced the allegations against him.

Federal relief allows state prisoners to challenge their confinement on federal constitutional grounds. Prisoners generally must exhaust available state court remedies before a federal court can grant relief.

Sandusky, now 82, was convicted in June 2012 on 45 counts related to the sexual abuse of 10 boys. He was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison and has repeatedly failed in efforts to overturn his convictions.