Allentown Diocese plans compensation fund for sex abuse survivors

Nov. 09--The Allentown Diocese and most other Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania announced Thursday that they will set up compensation funds for survivors of priest sex abuse.

The move comes after state lawmakers last month failed to pass a bill that would have given survivors two years to file civil lawsuits that have been barred by the statute of limitations. The Catholic Church opposed the so-called "two-year window" because payouts typically are much higher in courts than in compensation funds.

Bishops across the state acknowledged that they had to address survivors more comprehensively after the August release of a grand jury report that identified 301 priests who sexually abused more than 1,000 children over the past several decades.

The grand jury recommended opening the two-year window, which Attorney General Josh Shapiro called the best measure for survivors. Compensation funds are not an adequate substitute, he said in a statement Thursday.

"The grand jury recommended that victims deserve their day in court -- not that the church should be the arbiter of its own punishment," Shapiro said.

The Legislature should pass the reforms the grand jury recommended, he said, which include the two-year window.

The Allentown Diocese has not said how large its fund might be or who would qualify for it. As for when it would be established, spokesman Matt Kerr said, "It's coming in the near future."

In a statement Thursday, the diocese said "compensation alone cannot repair the damage" caused by priests who molested children.

"The diocese recognizes its responsibility to provide victims and survivors with an opportunity to share their experiences and receive compensation in a compassionate forum as one aspect of their healing and recovery," the statement said.

The diocese will not ask churchgoers to pick up the tab for the fund, Kerr said.

"Parish and school assets, weekly collections, contributions and bequests from parishioners, and donations to the Annual Appeal will not be used to fund the program," he said. "Rather, the diocese will use available reserves and will sell assets and borrow money as needed. While the program will require significant resources, the diocese will strive to maintain its mission to its five counties."

The diocese includes about 250,000 Catholics in Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton and Schuylkill counties.

In its statement, the diocese said it would hire an outside administrator to handle the fund, and that an independent board would oversee the work.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the dioceses of Greensburg, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Scranton also announced plans for compensation funds Thursday. The Erie Diocese on Aug. 30 said it was moving forward with its own fund.

A representative for the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese issued a statement saying it has spent $2.8 million on counseling for nearly 300 people, but it did not address whether they were offered compensation.

Church officials in Philadelphia, Greensburg, Scranton and Harrisburg said Washington, D.C., lawyer Kenneth R. Feinberg's firm would handle their funds. That firm has administered funds for victims in the New York Archdiocese as well as for victims in the Jerry Sandusky scandal at Penn State and the 9/11 attacks.

A Feinberg associate, Camille Biros, said the firm had not been contacted by the Allentown Diocese.

Most of the dioceses said Sunday collections and other donations would not be used to build their funds. They said they would use a combination of available cash, investment and insurance proceeds, and real estate sales.

In its announcement, the Philadelphia Archdiocese said the financial hit will be noticeable.

"This compensation program requires substantial fiscal commitment over time," it said. "It will impact the church and her ministries in a serious way, but this will not deter the archdiocese or the program from proceeding."

State Rep. Mark Rozzi, D-Berks, who led the failed legislative charge to amend the statute of limitations for all child sex abuse survivors, said compensation funds are "a step in the right direction" for those who do not want to go through the court process. He still supports the option to file lawsuits, which also can be a means to seek justice from church leaders who covered up abusive priests' crimes.

"At least the process is starting that the dioceses are holding themselves accountable," said Rozzi, who was raped by a priest as a boy. "Now we have to make sure they're putting the money in there and not just moving them through the system."

Attorney Mitchell Garabedian, renowned for representing clergy sex abuse victims in Boston and elsewhere and portrayed in the movie "Spotlight," said compensation funds sometimes are appropriate.

"The determining factor regarding whether a clergy sexual abuse victim should enter into a settlement program or wait to see if the statute of limitations is amended so that a lawsuit can be filed is: What will help the victim try to heal," he said. "The healing process is unique, difficult and everlasting for each and every clergy sexual abuse victim."

tdarragh@mcall.com

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