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	Cardinal Apologises to Clergy Sex Abuse Victims Evening Echo July 16, 2007 http://www.eveningecho.ie/news/bstory.asp?j=14682096&p=y468zy4z&n=14682184 Los Angeles — Cardinal Roger Mahony, leader of America's largest Roman Catholic archdiocese, apologised to the hundreds of people who will get a share of a €488m settlement over allegations of clergy sex abuse. "There really is no way to go back and give them that innocence that was taken from them. The one thing I wish I could give the victims ... I cannot," he said yesterday. "Once again, I apologise to anyone who has been offended, who has been abused. It should not have happened, and it will not happen again." The leader of the Los Angeles archdiocese said he had met dozens of people in the past 14 months alleging clergy abuse and those meetings helped him understand the importance of a quick resolution to the lawsuits. The settlement would not affect the archdiocese's core ministry, Mahony said, but the church would have to sell buildings, use some of its invested funds and borrow money. The archdiocese would not sell any parish property, he said. The deal between the archdiocese and more than 500 alleged victims of clergy sexual abuse reached on Saturday is by far the largest payout since the nationwide clergy abuse scandal emerged in 2002 in Boston. The settlement also calls for the release of priests' confidential personnel files after review by a judge. According to Tod Tamberg, spokesman for the archdiocese, the settlement did not require Mahony to make his public apology. Mahony and all parties are expected before a Los Angeles Superior Court judge today to enter the settlement into the court record. "I think for those of us who have been involved in this for more than five years, it's a huge relief," said Michael Hennigan, the archdiocese lawyer. "But it's a disappointment too that we didn't get it done much earlier than this." Parishioners reacted with disappointment and relief to the settlement. Vivian Viscarra, 50, who attends Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels three times a month, said the victims deserved the payout even though it could hurt the church's ability to deliver important services. The amount would average a little more than €960,000 per plaintiff, although individual payouts will vary according to the severity and duration of the abuse. "I am disappointed," Viscarra said. "And it's making me re-evaluate my views of whether people in the ministry should be married. People do have needs." The deal settles all 508 cases that remained against the archdiocese, which also paid €44m in December to settle 45 cases that were not covered by sexual abuse insurance. Under the latest deal, the archdiocese will pay €185m, insurance carriers will pay a combined €168m and several religious orders will chip in €44m. The remaining €90m will come from litigation with religious orders that chose not to participate in the deal, with the archdiocese guaranteeing resolution of those 80 to 100 cases within five years, Hennigan says. Standing outside the cathedral, Mary Grant, spokeswoman for Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, said the settlement did not end suffering for the thousands of victims of clergy abuse. "This is not over," she said. "Church officials would like to think that this settlement means everything is OK.... But this is not a magic wand." The settlements push the total amount paid out by the US church since 1950 to more than €1.5bn, with about a quarter of that coming from the Los Angeles archdiocese. A judge must sign off on the agreement.
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