Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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July 15, 2007

Catholic Church to Pay $660 Million Settlement in Abuse Cases
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=1826DB2:A6F02AD83191E160AF70820DA1532EEC9574F7DCC14957C0 500 victims of
sexual abuse by priests to receive settlement in Los Angeles Lawyers
in Los Angeles say the Roman Catholic Church there has agreed to pay
$660 million to some 500 victims of sexual abuse by priests between
the 1940s and 1990s.

The settlement is by far the largest ever reached with a Roman
Catholic diocese since the clergy abuse scandal erupted in Boston in
2002.

Ray Boucher, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs in the landmark case
confirmed the settlement late Saturday. He said the plaintiffs and the
Archdiocese of Los Angeles will make a joint statement about the case
Sunday, and will hold a news conference Monday.

Besides the money, the settlement requires the release of confidential
priest personnel files, which could reveal if the archdiocese covered
up past priest abuses.

The settlement with the nation's largest Catholic archdiocese will pay
the plaintiffs an average of well over a million dollars each. A judge
must approve the agreement, which was reached before the case was
scheduled to go to trial Monday.

Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.


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