The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York said on Oct. 6 that it has created a compensation program for people who were sexually abused by priests or deacons and are willing to forego lawsuits in exchange for an award to be determined by an independent mediator. Some advocates for victims of sexual abuse immediately assailed the program as an attempt to quash cases before New York’s legislature acts on a proposal to make it easier for victims to sue over abuse that happened years ago. Under the plan, people with abuse claims already pending with the church would have a limited time window—until Jan. 31—to apply for compensation. There will be no cap on the amount of compensation and the archdiocese has agreed to pay whatever amount mediators order. New York state lawmakers have debated extending the statute of limitations on suing sexual abusers of children or creating a window of opportunity for past victims to file civil suits against abusers. Such proposals have faced strong opposition from the Catholic Church and other institutions.
Abuse Compensation
Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York presides at an August Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York. (CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz) 
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
Polls abound, and the political ground keeps shifting, but one thing is sure: South Africa is likely to experience a significant political realignment on May 29.
Ric Burns’s splendid two-part PBS documentary, “Dante: Inferno to Paradise,” has brought Dante’s achievement beyond the groves of academe and into America’s living rooms.
With “Cowboy Carter,” her eighth studio album, Beyoncé not only explores the longed-for and carelessly and/or intentionally erased Black past in country music, but also moves the genre forward into a hopefully more expansive future.
“Petite Maman” is a magical-realist story about children and parents, the things we can’t say and learning to understand each other.