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July 12th, 2007

"Settlement Would Avoid the First Trial of Local Priest"

The Los Angeles Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church is expected to reach a settlement agreement soon regarding about 570 claims that the Diocese failed to protect children from sexual abuse by Catholic priests. The settlement would head off the first trial against a local priest, Father Clinton Hagenbach, who is alleged to have abused many children over a two-decade period. Jury selection for that case is scheduled for July 17.

Stonewalling by the Church

The top church official in Los Angeles, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, has waged an extensive court battle to deny access to church personnel documents by prosecutors, the public, abuse victims, and their attorneys. The church is widely alleged to have ignored hundreds of instances of abuse by priests nationwide, simply moving the priests to new parishes when complaints about their conduct surfaced.

However, a court ruled in a California case that grand juries investigating crimes and civil lawyers preparing for trial are entitled to see such documents. Attorneys for the plaintiffs in the settlement negotiations have stipulated that any settlement between their clients and the Archdiocese would have to include the release of the relevant church documents to the public.

Hundreds of Abusers

The settlement negotiations in Los Angeles have been complicated, with more than 570 claims of abuse by 221 alleged perpetrators, with more than 60 plaintiffs' attorneys involved. The archdiocese has already agreed to pay more than $110 million to settle the claims of 86 victims, but the potential payout for the rest of the claims is a staggering half-billion dollars.

Church's Insurers Balk at Paying

The Catholic Church in the U.S. has blamed its insurers for not paying the major share of settlements that have already been reached between the church and sex abuse victims. The insurers, in turn, have alleged that church officials have purposely withheld information about the abuse, and that the insurers do not have to pay if the church officials' actions are found to be criminal.

Church Has Billions in Assets

Although the standoff between the Catholic Church and it insurers is further delaying the conclusion of many victims' cases, a Los Angeles Times analysis showed that the Los Angeles Archdiocese owns at least 1,600 properties worth $4 billion, as of December 2006. In contrast, the San Diego Archdiocese announced early this year that it would file for bankruptcy rather than go to trial over allegations of sexual abuse by priests there.

(Source: Los Angeles Times online)

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