A California court has approved the Archdiocese of Los Angeles' payment of record compensation to victims of clergy sexual exploitation. The US channel CNN reported on the settlement accepted on Monday. Court agreed to settlement between lawyers for more than 500 plaintiffs and Catholic Church. Accordingly, the archdiocese is to pay $660 million to men and women abused by pedophile priests. The money is to be paid out by December.
With John J. Geoghan made the inconceivable public: when the priest was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2002, the Catholic Church in the U.S. faced the worst crisis in its history. The clergyman had sexually abused children and teenagers for decades. Dozens of other cases subsequently became public. Geoghan is no longer alive. Church still battling shadows of the past. And for reparations. Now an archdiocese is paying a record amount of damages to their abuse victims.
Highest payment of a US diocese The Archdiocese of Los Angeles will pay the equivalent of more than $660 million in damages to abuse victims, according to U.S. media reports. The move was intended to finally settle some 500 continuing pending sexual abuse disputes by Catholic clergy, U.S. media reported Sunday. They referred to information from lawyer circles. Financial compensation gives each abuse victim ca. $1.3 million in compensation.The sum represents the largest payment ever made by a U.S. diocese to abuse victims.
Cardinal: It should never have happened Cardinal Roger Mahony already announced that the archdiocese would sell its administrative building and also divest itself of other properties to raise enough money. The work of the church has been affected because of the high damage toll, but at its core it has not been affected, said church attorney Michale Hennigan.Mahony publicly apologized to all abuse victims (Listen here). "It should never have happened and I will make sure it never happens again," Mahony said.
"Suffered in silence for decades" Mahony said it was the church's hope that the "settlement now reached will bring some healing and some kind of closure to the victims, many of whom have suffered in silence for decades". Even if financial compensation cannot undo the suffering inflicted, the church hopes to contribute to a new beginning in the lives of those affected.At the same time, the cardinal recalled that the church had done everything in recent years to prevent future cases of abuse. So, he said, prevention programs have been introduced, as well as screening of all priests.
Permanently threatened by lawsuits The Catholic Church is permanently threatened by lawsuits in the U.S., some of which call into question the existence of the church. Thus 5 dioceses are already under creditor protection, in other words: bankrupt. San Diego, Tucson/Arizona, Davenport/Iowa, Spokane/Washington and Portland/Oregon. The Vatican does not participate in the payments. The dioceses and parishes have to pay for any compensation. In the past few years, the U.S. Catholic Church has given more than 1.5 billion dollars in compensation paid.