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  Outline Used to Classify Abuse

By Paul A. Long
Cincinnati Post [Covington KY]
June 9, 2005

The blueprint that will be used to distribute up to $120 million to victims of molestation by priests in the Diocese of Covington has been used before to settle similar claims, say attorneys involved.

It's an outline that helps classify victims according to the gravity of the abuse suffered, and it recognizes that some acts are far more serious than others.

And while it does not tie specific dollar figures to specific injuries or events, it does provide a similar range of payments to similar ranges of abuse.

"As the severity of the abuse increases, the amount of recovery increases," according to documents filed in connection with the settlement.

The documents chart the details of the settlement, announced Friday, of a lawsuit alleging a 50-year cover-up by diocesan officials of priestly sexual abuse.

The agreement calls for a $120 million settlement fund, the largest yet from any diocese in America since the Roman Catholic Church's sexual-abuse crisis erupted some 15 years ago.

The pact was signed by Stan Chesley, who represented those who sued the diocese, and Carrie Huff, the diocese's attorney.

Today, both sides will be in Boone Circuit Court, where they will ask Special Judge John Potter to begin the process of approving the agreement.

Many other agreements in the country either divided the settlement fund equally among parties, or gave attorneys a lump sum to distribute to those who were abused. But the Covington case is unique because it's a class-action lawsuit, which allows for a distinction between members of the class.

Both parties will agree on the appointment of a special master to review claims and distribute compensation, under the oversight of the court, according to court documents.

"The settlement is the product of intense negotiation, both as to the amount of the settlement fund and as to the process by which the individual awards will be determined," Bishop Roger Foys said in an affidavit filed with the court.

"I believe that the settlement we have reached is fair and reasonable to the victims and the diocese. The claims administration process we have agreed to will assure that victims' privacy will be protected, and that they will not have to endure a (protracted) legal process before their claims are resolved."

The class is defined as any minor abused by a priest or diocesan employee from Jan. 1, 1956, to the present. It doesn't specify how many people that covers.

According to the diocese's most recent report, it has received 205 allegations against 35 priests, nearly 10 percent of the 364 priests in the diocese since 1950.

Some of those accusations already have been settled - many of them using the formula outlined in the class-action settlement.

"It's the same formula they've been using in my cases," said Barbara Bonar, a Covington attorney who has settled more than a dozen claims against the diocese.

"There are no surprises from my clients who have already settled. I think everyone is very happy and very relieved that the diocese stuck to the same formula."

Angela Ford, a Lexington attorney who settled cases against the diocese for $5.2 million, said she helped developed the formula. She represented 27 people who had claims against the Diocese of Covington for abusive acts that took place when it included what is now the Diocese of Lexington.

"We had to have some way of looking at a financial award for the distress and trauma they suffered," she said.

When she sat down to analyze her cases, she said, they seemed to fall naturally into four categories. After negotiating with diocese attorneys, they reached the agreement, and her clients received between $10,000 and $450,000, Ford said.

That's generally the range people in the Covington Diocese lawsuit can expect to receive.

The Covington settlement lays out four classes of victims, based on the nature of the abuse, its duration and the age of the child.

It also takes into account the use of drugs, alcohol or pornography to lessen the youth's resistance: any "particularly heinous circumstances or behavior"; and whether the abused child has any mental or physical deficiencies that would make him or her more susceptible to abuse.

Category 1 calls for monetary settlements of between $5,000 and $45,000, and has three descriptions.

One is remarks about a child's sexual organs or sexual matters that provoke a reasonable fear of assault. The second is kissing, hugging or caressing under circumstances that produce a reasonable fear of assault. The third is sexual stalking.

Category 2 calls for monetary settlements of between $15,000 and $150,000, and also has three descriptions.

The first is staring at a minor's naked sexual organs in a manner that "resulted in humiliation or a reasonable fear" of sexual assault. The second is taking pictures of a minor's exposed sexual organs, and the third is fondling a child through his clothing.

Category 3 comes into play when the abuse includes specific sexual acts. It calls for monetary awards of between $150,000 and $350,000 and has four descriptions.

The first is fondling under a minor's clothes, the second and third deal with masturbation, and the fourth is a single instance of digital penetration.

Category 4, the most serious, calls for awards of between $300,000 and $450,000. It is reserved for acts of rape and sodomy, or multiple digital penetration.

The settlement also provides for an extraordinary injury fund of up to $550,000, and a counseling fund of up to 5 percent of the total of $120 million.

That fund will be available to anyone who suffered abuse by a diocesan employee, whether or not they are eligible for a monetary award as part of the class-action lawsuit.

 
 

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