BishopAccountability.org

NJ Catholic dioceses unveil compensation program for victims of clergy abuse

By Deena Yellin
North Jersey Record
February 11, 2019

https://njersy.co/2IiIQNk

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[with video]

Victims of clergy abuse from any of New Jersey's five Roman Catholic dioceses will be able to seek compensation from a newly launched Independent Victim Compensation Program, the program's administrators announced Monday. 

The administrators, Kenneth Feinberg and Camille Biros, are noted victims' compensation experts who have operated similar programs for dioceses in other states, as well as the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund.

"The program provides victims with an attractive alternative to litigation, providing victims a speedy and transparent process to resolve their claims with a significantly lower level of proof and corroboration than required in a court of law," Feinberg and Biros said in a joint statement. 

The announcement of the program drew mixed reactions Monday from advocates for victims of clergy abuse.

"If the compensation fund helps a clergy sexual abuse victim try to heal, then the victim should enter into the fund process. But if a victim wants to try to gain full transparency through a legal action, then the victim should wait to determine if the statute of limitations will be amended," said attorney Mitchell Garabedian, who has represented more than 50 clergy abuse victims in New Jersey. 

Mark Crawford, the New Jersey state director of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP, said the fund is no substitute for amending state law. 

"It's important to keep in mind for those who choose to access the fund of what they will never learn," he said. "Who in the church knew what, and when? Could their abuse have been prevented had church officials taken earlier action? Where is the abuser now; is he still a priest?

"Finally, if this fund doesn't include religious order clerics, almost a third of clergy abuse victims will be without recourse," he said, referring to such orders as Jesuit and Benedictine. 

Feinberg and Biros will operate independently from any diocese officials as they evaluate claims and determine appropriate compensations for victims.  

Church officials will have no authority to challenge their decisions, Biros said.

"Cardinal [Joseph] Tobin and the bishops of the five New Jersey dioceses have delegated to us this independent responsibility," she said. "They have assured us that we have complete discretion in deciding who is eligible to receive compensation and the amount to be paid to the individual victim."

The size of the awards will be based on the type of abuse and the frequency of the abuse as well as other factors. All payments authorized by the administrators will be paid by the diocese where the accused priest served.  

The program will be paid for through self-funded insurance reserves, the possible sale of diocese property and borrowing by the diocese, sources say.

The program will give first priority to victims who previously made claims of sexual abuse, and a second phase will allow new claimants to register for the program. 

Participation in the program is voluntary, but victims who accept compensation will be required to sign a release surrendering the right to file a lawsuit. 

Victims will have until Dec. 31, 2019, to submit their claims for the program. 

New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal began a criminal investigation into clergy abuse last autumn, after an explosive Pennsylvania report that more than 1,000 children had been abused by hundreds of priests over a period of many years. 

In a statement released Monday, Tobin expressed his deep regret to victims and their families for the abuses that took place and for those in ministry who failed to protect them. 

"While we recognize that no degree of financial compensation can adequately address the suffering endured, this program is a genuine expression of our remorse and our desire to make amends for past transgressions," the statement said.




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