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	Jesuits Say No Settlement Yet over Sex Abuse Claims By Mary Beth Smetzer Fairbanks Daily News-Miner November 18, 2007 http://newsminer.com/2007/11/18/9987 A $50 million agreement to settle 110 claims of clerical sexual abuse filed by Alaska Natives against the Oregon Province of the Society of Jesus has been reached, the attorney for the plaintiffs said today. A statement from the Jesuits, however, took strong issue with the statement by Anchorage attorney Ken Roosa that a settlement had been reached. "While the Jesuits have been dedicated to finding a just and timely solution to these cases, it is my understanding that there are still many issues that need to be finalized before it is appropriate to make an official announcement about a settlement," the Rev. John Whitney, Oregon Province provincial, said in the statement. "When those issues are resolved, we will be available for a more complete discussion of the matter." Whitney said the Oregon Province is "disappointed" that the plaintiffs' attorneys issued a news release earlier in the day saying a settlement had been reached. He called the action "premature and detrimental to the work of healing about which we are all concerned." For the past seven months, attorneys for the claimants and the Jesuits have been working on a mediated settlement. If the settlement assertion by Roosa is correct, the agreement would be the largest single settlement against a Catholic religious order. It does not include the approximately 135 child sex abuse claims still standing against the Fairbanks Catholic Diocese. Contact: msmetzer%40newsminer.com
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