Source:NPR
By TOM GJELTEN
Sixteen years after an investigation in Boston highlighted the dimensions of the sex abuse crisis in the Catholic priesthood, the financial and reputational cost to the Catholic church continues to grow.
Lawsuits by abuse victims have so far forced dioceses and religious orders in the United States to pay settlements totaling more than $3 billion, and at least 19 have filed for bankruptcy protection.
Attorney James Stang, whose firm has represented abuse victims in most of the bankruptcy cases, acknowledges that big payouts can’t compensate the victims for their suffering, but he argues it’s important to hold church leaders accountable for their negligence in allowing the abuse to happen and abusers to go unpunished.
Categories: America, Catholic Church, Sexual Abuse, The Muslim Times, USA
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