DAVENPORT (IA)
Sioux City Journal
DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) -- The Catholic Diocese of Davenport is facing claims from six men who say they were sexually abused by priests in the 1960s and 1970s, including Lawrence Soens, former bishop of the Diocese of Sioux City, according to an attorney for the men.
The attorney, Craig Levien, is handling mediation of the claims, which he said were brought in the past month.
They are among the first brought against the diocese since it paid $9 million to settle 37 civil claims in October. Part of that earlier settlement's non-monetary terms requires future claimants to pursue mediation before filing lawsuits.
David Montgomery, a spokesman for the diocese, said there have been a few other claims brought to the diocese since the settlement, but "there hasn't been a flood."
A new lawsuit was filed by a man who accuses the Rev. Lawrence D. Soens of abusing him in the early 1960s. Soens later became the bishop of the Diocese of Sioux City.