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	Archdiocese Reaches $1.65 Million Settlement with Abused Teen Associated Press, carried in Journal Gazette and Times-Courier September 21, 2007 http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2007/09/21/ap-state-il/d8rpk1d00.txt Chicago - The Archdiocese of Chicago has reached a $1.65 million settlement with the family of a 15-year-old who was sexually abused as a young boy by a Roman Catholic priest. The Rev. Daniel McCormack pleaded guilty in July to abusing five boys between the ages of 8 and 12 while he served as parish priest at St. Agatha Catholic Church and was sentenced to five years in prison. The settlement will pay for therapy and let the boy put the abuse behind him, said Steve Dicker, an attorney for the boy's family. "The victim and his family are relieved that as a result of the settlement the child will not have to testify in either the criminal or civil proceedings," Dicker said. Cardinal Francis George said in a statement that "My prayers go out to this young person and his family as well as my hope for healing." According to the lawsuit, McCormack engaged in "continuous forced sexual abuse" of the boy for four years. The abuse ended in January 2005, Dicker said. The 15-year-old was one of the victims McCormack admitted to abusing when he pleaded guilty to five counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, said David Clohessy, national director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP). The archdiocese has drawn intense criticism over its handling of the case. McCormack was not removed from the West Side parish and school until he first was charged in January 2006 _ several months after one of the allegations was made against him. George told St. Agatha parishioners after McCormack was charged that he should have pushed harder to find out details about the allegations against the priest and also to communicate to parents the steps taken by the church. He launched an eight-month internal church investigation that found procedures for removing priests from the ministry were "far from perfect."
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