|
 The settlement resolves 30 pending claims filed between 2010 and
earlier this year alleging abuse by priests 20 or more years ago,
the diocese said in a statement.
"The diocese sincerely hopes that this settlement can bring about
some closure to those hurt by abuse in the past," it said.
A large part of the settlement will be covered by insurers, with the
diocese paying the rest, the statement said.
The Kansas City diocese in 2008 settled a lawsuit for $10 million
brought by 47 plaintiffs who claimed they were repeatedly sexually
abused by priests when they were children.
 In 2012, one of its priests pled guilty to producing child
pornography, and the diocese's current leader, Bishop Robert Finn,
was convicted of failing to report him to police.
The Kansas City agreement came a day after a Minnesota lawsuit over
alleged clerical sexual abuse was settled and new child protection
guidelines were agreed.
A former altar boy, Jon David Couzens, filed a $10 million civil
suit against the Kansas City diocese last month alleging that he had
been sexually abused by a now-dead priest.
[to top of second column] |
David Clohessy, the director of the Survivor Network of those Abused
by Priests (SNAP), said in a statement that SNAP was relieved that
Couzens and others would not have face legal challenges from Finn
and his lawyers.
But, he added, "more coverups by more Catholic officials would have
emerged had these cases gone to trial and we're sad that this won't
happen."
(Reporting by Ian Simpson)
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
