Clergy sex abuse settlement reached

By Steve Eckert
KARE
October 12, 2014

http://www.kare11.com/story/news/local/2014/10/12/clergy-sex-abuse-settlement-reached/17167939/

Winona Diocese

ST PAUL, Minn. - There's a landmark settlement – scheduled to be announced Monday – in a clergy sex abuse law suit that has rocked the local Catholic church.

Sources tell KARE 11 News that lawyers for the church and for abuse victim's attorney Jeff Anderson will outline terms of the settlement to a Ramsey County judge Monday morning – then make a public announcement at an afternoon news conference.

In addition to a confidential financial settlement, the agreement will establish a new court-monitored protocol for handling allegations of sexual abuse against priests.

The historic agreement comes just weeks before a trial was scheduled to begin in a case that accused the Archdocese of St Paul and Minneapolis – and the Diocese of Winona – of creating an "public nuisance" by covering up clergy sex abuse cases for decades.

For months, now, attorneys for child abuse victims have been publicly releasing thousands of pages of damaging internal church files they uncovered during court-ordered discovery.

Monday's settlement comes on the same day Ramsey County Judge John Van deNorth was scheduled to hear arguments about whether TV cameras would be allowed inside the courtroom during the trial.