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  Judge OKs Church Counseling Payments
Abuse Cases - the Portland Archdiocese Is Allowed to Pay Fees Again after a Plaintiff's Suicide

By Steve Woodward
The Oregonian [Portland OR]
September 20, 2005

Two months after the most recent suicide of a priest sexual-abuse plaintiff, a federal bankruptcy judge said Monday that she will allow the Archdiocese of Portland to resume paying counseling expenses for some remaining plaintiffs.

The church had paid for counseling for certain sex-abuse claimants before July 2004, when the archdiocese declared bankruptcy.

Two suicides and one apparent suicide among plaintiffs since December prompted lawyer Daniel J. Gatti, who represents more than two dozen men alleging clergy abuse, to ask the court to permit the archdiocese to resume the payments.

The latest suicide, on July 21, came five weeks before the Brooks man, Larry Lynn Craven, was scheduled to enter settlement talks with the archdiocese over his $2 million claim.

Both Gatti and the archdiocese agree on the need for counseling for some plaintiffs. But one of the church's lawyers told Judge Elizabeth Perris during a Monday hearing that her client disputes the cause of the suicides.

"We disagree that any particular person committed suicide in anticipation of mediations," said lawyer Margaret Hoffmann, who represents the church in settlement talks.

Perris said she will sign an order that sets up a system to determine who is qualified to get up to 12 sessions of counseling. Only people who have no other means of paying for counseling will qualify.

In addition, the archdiocese has the right to approve or suggest the counselor. The statements made in counseling can't be used as evidence in any of the pending sex-abuse cases, although both the plaintiff and the archdiocese will have access to the counseling records.

More than 200 people have filed claims alleging sex abuse by clergy within the Archdiocese of Portland. Gatti said he expected only a fraction of those to apply for counseling.

 
 

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