THE US:The largest Roman Catholic archdiocese in the US has agreed to pay hundreds of people who were sexually abused by priests more than $1 million each and to release confidential personnel files to the public.
The $660 million settlement will put an end to litigation by more than 500 people who have accused 221 priests, brothers, lay teachers and other church employees in the Los Angeles archdiocese of abuse. It came as the first of a series of civil actions against the archdiocese was due to open in court today and will allow Archbishop Roger Mahony to avoid testifying about his handling of sexual abuse allegations.
"It's been a long, hard slog. I'm delighted to see it's come to a conclusion," said Michael Hennigan, the lawyer representing the church. He said that, although the settlement is by far the biggest any diocese has made to victims of abuse, parish assets would not be touched. The archdiocese, which owns property valued at close to $4 billion, is expected to pay $250 million in cash, with the rest of the money coming from insurance companies and religious orders.
"Some of the victims have waited more than five decades for a chance at reconciliation and resolution. This is a down payment on that debt long overdue," said Raymond Boucher, the main attorney for the plaintiffs.
Dr Mahony had long resisted the plaintiffs' demand that personnel files should be made available to the public, and the archdiocese declared in 2004 that to disclose "the spiritual, pastoral and psychological counselling of the priests" would be to breach a sacred trust.
Three years later, the church has agreed to open the files, with a judge mediating any objections from individual priests. A judge ruled last month that the confidential files of priests accused of molesting children can be made public, even if the clerics were never charged with a crime and legal claims against them were not proven.
"The rights of privacy must give way to the state's interest in protecting its children from sexual abuse," Los Angeles county superior court judge Peter Lichtman said.
The judge said that allowing the church to keep the files secret would punish those who claimed to have been abused and needlessly prolong litigation.
"It would provide the alleged perpetrators and enablers with a safe haven for settlement. The defendants' conduct would be forever hidden and safe from scrutiny," he said.
The latest settlement brings the total amount paid out by the US church since 1950 to more than $2 billion and dwarfs settlements agreed by other dioceses in recent years. Five US dioceses have sought bankruptcy protection because of child abuse claims, and at least 10 bishops and archbishops have resigned over their alleged involvement in sexual abuse or in covering up the abuse of others.
Dr Mahony says his archdiocese now takes all abuse allegations seriously, immediately notifying police, paying for counselling for the victims and, if the complaint is viewed as credible, removing the priest from active ministry. The archbishop has admitted making serious mistakes in the past, notably in the case of Fr Michael Stephen Baker, who admitted in 1986 that he had abused a number of boys.
Dr Mahony did not inform the police, but sent the priest to New Mexico for treatment and later transferred him to nine different parishes, where he allegedly molested 23 boys and girls.