Our View: Compensation fund for clergy-abuse victims is easy way out

Times Leader
November 12, 2018

https://www.timesleader.com/opinion/op-ed/724622/our-view-compensation-fund-for-clergy-abuse-victims-is-easy-way-out

We found it welcome news when it was recently revealed that most of the Roman Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania — including Scranton — are now setting up victim compensation funds.

Those who suffered heinous crimes at the hands of priests deserve compensation for the trauma that not only destroyed the innocence of childhood but will be with them for the rest of their lives.

But we remain somewhat concerned the Catholic hierarchy is still intent on making a last-ditch effort to protect its own, a habit well-documented in this summer’s shocking grand jury report.

Some have suggested the funds could just be another device employed by church leaders to make problems go away without having to go through the pain of full transparency.

“The biggest drawback in a fund like this is that it does not force the institution to come clean with all the information that it has regarding the abuse,” lawyer Ben Andreozzi, who represents dozens of Pennsylvanians who claim abuse by priests, told the Associated Press.

It’s obvious what’s going on here.

The church is trying to use the compensation funds as an alternative to the state Legislature creating a retroactive window for civil lawsuits.

The state Senate has stalled that effort for now.

But those leading the charge for the special litigation window, including clergy abuse survivor and state Rep. Mark Rozzi, seem intent on pushing the issue again when our representatives return to Harrisburg in January.

So, in the meantime, Catholic dioceses are busy touting this new form of compensation they’ve created. The argument on their side is victims can get a financial resolution without going through a protracted litigation process that could take months or even years.

While that is a valid point, it still ignores the real issue at hand.

If a new wave of civil lawsuits was allowed to proceed, we would likely learn much more about the scope of both the abuse that regularly occurred within the church for decades and the lengths to which bishops and others allegedly tried to conceal it.

That’s because in a court of law, church leaders and clergy members would have to testify under oath.

Documents could be subpoenaed.

And big payouts would likely be awarded to victims who right now don’t have a legal leg to stand on. And those payouts would be up to a jury to decide, not the church. (The Scranton diocese says it would have no control over the compensation fund to be controlled by an outside coordinator, but some have called that claim into question.)

Scranton Bishop Joseph Bambera has said “providing compensation to these survivors is the right thing to do.”

Yes, it is.

But it’s not just about the dollars in this instance.

The public needs full transparency. Nothing can impede that.

If the dioceses want to create the funds and start paying victims, they certainly can do that.

However, we still need the retroactive lawsuit window to help force out more of the truth.

As we’ve said before in this space, the more we learn about this horrible period in the church’s history, the less likely it is to happen again.