PHILADELPHIA (PA)
Catholic News Service
February 24, 2019
By Lou Baldwin
A report on the first financial settlements by the Independent Reconciliation and Reparation Program for victims of clergy sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia has been made public.
The IRRP began Nov. 13, 2018, as a way to compensate individuals who had been abused years ago as minors by priests of the archdiocese but whose cases are time-barred from civil prosecution due to Pennsylvania’s statutes of limitation.
The program’s Oversight Committee released its first interim report on the awards Feb. 15. Of the $8.425 million authorized for payment to date, more than $4.5 million has been paid, according to the report, with the remaining pending victims’ acceptance of the terms. The paid claims number 16; there are 20 pending.
While the awards are paid by the archdiocese, it has no control over who receives them or in what amount, since the IRRP is run independently of the archdiocese. The program’s decisions are final and may not be appealed.
According to the report, packets were mailed to 348 previously known individuals who had reported sexual abuse. Of this number 70 have filed claims. Some packets were returned by the post office as undeliverable and there are at this time approximately 15 individuals that the archdiocese is still trying to locate and invite to participate in the program.
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