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LA church will pay for abuse

Attorneys for both sides in the clergy scandal are expected to announce a settlement soon.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published July 15, 2007

LOS ANGELES - The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles will settle its clergy abuse cases for at least $600-million, by far the largest payout in the church's sexual abuse scandal, the Associated Press learned Saturday.

Attorneys for the archdiocese and the plaintiffs are expected to announce the deal Monday, the day the first of more than 500 clergy abuse cases was scheduled for jury selection, two people with knowledge of the agreement told the AP. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the settlement had not been made public.

The archdiocese and its insurers will pay between $600-million and $650-million to about 500 plaintiffs - an average of $1.2-million to $1.3-million per person. The settlement also calls for the release of confidential priests' personnel files after review by a judge assigned to oversee the litigation, the sources said.

It wasn't immediately clear how the payout would be split among the insurers, the archdiocese and several Roman Catholic religious orders. A judge must sign off on the agreement.

Lead plaintiffs' attorney Ray Boucher confirmed the sides were working on a deal, but he would not discuss specifics. He said negotiations would continue through the weekend because many details remained unresolved.

Tod Tamberg, archdiocese spokesman, declined to comment on settlement details. "The archdiocese will be in court Monday morning," he said.

Steven Sanchez, 47, was one of the plaintiffs set to go to trial Monday. He was expected to testify in the trial involving the late Rev. Clinton Hagenbach.

Sanchez, a financial adviser, said the past few months have been especially difficult. "We're 48 hours away from starting the trial and I've been spending a lot of time getting emotionally prepared to take them on, but I'm glad," he said. "It's been a long five years."

The settlement would be the largest ever by a Roman Catholic archdiocese since the clergy sexual abuse scandal erupted in Boston in 2002.

The Los Angeles archdiocese, its insurers and various Roman Catholic orders have paid more than $114-million to settle 86 claims so far.

Cardinal Roger Mahony recently told parishioners in an open letter that the archdiocese was selling its high-rise administrative building and considering the sale of about 50 other nonessential church properties to raise funds for a settlement.

Fast Facts:

Major church abuse payouts

Sex abuse by Roman Catholic priests has cost the U.S. church at least $2.1-billion since 1950. The following are some of the largest known payouts to victims since the crisis erupted in 2002 in the Archdiocese of Boston:

Archdiocese of Los Angeles, 2007: At least $600-million to about 500 people.

Diocese of Orange, Calif., 2004: $100-million for 90 abuse claims.

Diocese of Covington, Ky., 2006: Up to $84-million for more than 350 people.

Archdiocese of Boston, 2003: $84-million for 552 claims.

Diocese of Oakland, Calif., 2005: $56-million to 56 people.

Archdiocese of Portland, Ore., 2007: About $52-million to 175 victims to emerge from bankruptcy protection. Sets aside another $20-million for any future claims.

Diocese of Spokane, Wash., 2007: $48-million for about 150 claims to emerge from bankruptcy protection.

Diocese of Sacramento, Calif., 2005: $35-million to 33 people.

Archdiocese of Louisville, Ky., 2003: $25.7-million to 243 victims.

Diocese of Tucson, Ariz., 2005: Agrees to fund a settlement trust worth about $22-million for more than 50 victims to emerge from bankruptcy protection.

Associated Press

[Last modified July 15, 2007, 00:58:13]