D. Armenta
Plagman$660 Million Settlement for those Alleging to have been Sexually Abused by a Priest
A $660 million settlement between the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles and over 500 alleged victims of clergy abuse has now been approved. Within ten minutes of the announcement, an additional 18,540 people came forward claiming that they had also been victims of clergy abuse.
Some of the plaintiffs cried what were probably tears of sadness as their $660 million settlement was approved, praying to God that their share might just be enough to make the pain go away. “You think, ‘I can never escape this’,” said one of the plaintiffs in between tears, “and then suddenly the whole world knows that you weren’t just milking this sexual abuse thing for attention, and suddenly you feel better.”
“This is the right result,” said LA County Superior Court Judge Haley Fromholz. “Settling the cases was the right thing to do, and it was done by a number of extremely talented and dedicated people putting in an awful lot of time just to right a wrong, because that’s what lawyers do.”
The plaintiffs’ attorneys are expected to receive up to 40% of the settlement. (AP) Ray Bouchet, the lead attorney for the alleged victims, told his clients to stand during the hearing and thanked them for their resolve, their courage, and their $264 million cut of the settlement.
The individual payouts will vary according to the severity and duration of the abuse alleged, although the shafting that they received from their lawyers does not factor in. The severity of abuse will take into account the age of the child, the location of the inappropriateness on both persons involved, and the number of psychological disorders that resulted. Alcoholics and schizophrenics are expected to receive the largest payouts.
Although this entire situation probably could have been avoided if the Catholic Church allowed priests to marry, the Pope ruled out any possibility of a potential change in their man-made doctrine that was written by man and is therefore God’s will. “Allowing priests to marry is just plain wrong, and I refuse to allow any wrongdoings or inappropriate behaviors to be associated in any way with the Catholic Church,” explained the Pope. “That’s how we’ve done it in the past, and like I always say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
The recent deal settles all of the 508 cases that had been pending against the archdiocese who had already paid $60 million last December to cover 45 different cases that weren’t covered by sexual abuse insurance. (AP) Initially, even lawyers were flabbergasted that “sexual abuse insurance” existed, but once they did it paved the way for much larger and more lucrative lawsuits.
“You don’t sue a Mexican driver; they don’t have insurance,” explained a lawyer representing the plaintiffs, “you don’t sue the principal, you sue the school district. It’s simple accounting here, people. 40% of zero is… umm… well it ain’t as much as 40% of $660 million I’ll tell you that right now.”
Of the exorbitant sum, the archdiocese will pay $250 million, which will likely come from selling some buildings and asking the Jews for a loan. The interest rate will likely be low given that the Catholic Church can play the “you killed my savior” card. Insurance carriers will pick up $227 million of the tab, which is sure to cause the Church’s sexual abuse insurance premiums to skyrocket. However, they should get some kind of a discount depending on the grades of the schoolboys they abused. Also, every six months they go without another victim coming forward earns another 5% off of their premium. Unfortunately, the only carriers that will insure the Catholic Church are those that accept high-risk clients.
Several religious orders are going to chip in and cover another $60 million, leaving $123 million that will come from litigation of the religious orders that chose not to participate in the deal. The archdiocese has guaranteed, however, that those 80 to 100 cases will be solved within five years, or else God can strike him dead right then and there.
After all is said and done, the US Church has paid more than $2 billion in settlements since 1950 (AP), making it the top sexual abuse industry in the nation; MySpace is a close second.
Some of the plaintiffs cried what were probably tears of sadness as their $660 million settlement was approved, praying to God that their share might just be enough to make the pain go away. “You think, ‘I can never escape this’,” said one of the plaintiffs in between tears, “and then suddenly the whole world knows that you weren’t just milking this sexual abuse thing for attention, and suddenly you feel better.”
“This is the right result,” said LA County Superior Court Judge Haley Fromholz. “Settling the cases was the right thing to do, and it was done by a number of extremely talented and dedicated people putting in an awful lot of time just to right a wrong, because that’s what lawyers do.”
The plaintiffs’ attorneys are expected to receive up to 40% of the settlement. (AP) Ray Bouchet, the lead attorney for the alleged victims, told his clients to stand during the hearing and thanked them for their resolve, their courage, and their $264 million cut of the settlement.
The individual payouts will vary according to the severity and duration of the abuse alleged, although the shafting that they received from their lawyers does not factor in. The severity of abuse will take into account the age of the child, the location of the inappropriateness on both persons involved, and the number of psychological disorders that resulted. Alcoholics and schizophrenics are expected to receive the largest payouts.
Although this entire situation probably could have been avoided if the Catholic Church allowed priests to marry, the Pope ruled out any possibility of a potential change in their man-made doctrine that was written by man and is therefore God’s will. “Allowing priests to marry is just plain wrong, and I refuse to allow any wrongdoings or inappropriate behaviors to be associated in any way with the Catholic Church,” explained the Pope. “That’s how we’ve done it in the past, and like I always say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
The recent deal settles all of the 508 cases that had been pending against the archdiocese who had already paid $60 million last December to cover 45 different cases that weren’t covered by sexual abuse insurance. (AP) Initially, even lawyers were flabbergasted that “sexual abuse insurance” existed, but once they did it paved the way for much larger and more lucrative lawsuits.
“You don’t sue a Mexican driver; they don’t have insurance,” explained a lawyer representing the plaintiffs, “you don’t sue the principal, you sue the school district. It’s simple accounting here, people. 40% of zero is… umm… well it ain’t as much as 40% of $660 million I’ll tell you that right now.”
Of the exorbitant sum, the archdiocese will pay $250 million, which will likely come from selling some buildings and asking the Jews for a loan. The interest rate will likely be low given that the Catholic Church can play the “you killed my savior” card. Insurance carriers will pick up $227 million of the tab, which is sure to cause the Church’s sexual abuse insurance premiums to skyrocket. However, they should get some kind of a discount depending on the grades of the schoolboys they abused. Also, every six months they go without another victim coming forward earns another 5% off of their premium. Unfortunately, the only carriers that will insure the Catholic Church are those that accept high-risk clients.
Several religious orders are going to chip in and cover another $60 million, leaving $123 million that will come from litigation of the religious orders that chose not to participate in the deal. The archdiocese has guaranteed, however, that those 80 to 100 cases will be solved within five years, or else God can strike him dead right then and there.
After all is said and done, the US Church has paid more than $2 billion in settlements since 1950 (AP), making it the top sexual abuse industry in the nation; MySpace is a close second.
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