Coast to Coast Catholic Sex Abuse

TOP US BISHOP CHARGED WITH CHILD SEX

SEATTLE - The president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishop William Skylstad, has been accused of sexually abusing a child in the early 1960s, according to a statement issued by the Spokane, Washington diocese.
Skylstad, who is also the Spokane, Washington, bishop, denied the accusation in the statement on Wednesday.
"I have kept the promise of celibacy that I made when I was ordained a deacon 47 years ago," Skylstad said.
The latest allegation in the sex abuse scandal at the Spokane diocese surfaced before a Friday deadline to file a claim for past cases of abuse by Spokane clergy.
The Spokane Spokesman-Review newspaper reported that a woman, who was less than 18 years old in early 1960s, filed the claim on December 27, saying the abuse took place at Gonzaga University and another local parish.
Skylstad was a student at Gonzaga from 1962 to 1966.
The Spokane diocese, one of three in the United States to file for bankruptcy because of sex abuse claims, offered 75 victims of priest paedophilia a $45.75m joint settlement last month.
At a news conference to announce the settlement offer, Skylstad apologied to the victims on behalf of the diocese.
Part of the settlement proposal also required Skylstad to advocate for the elimination of statutes of limitations for sex crimes and to write letters of apology to the families and victims of abuse.

CHURCH TO SETTLE IN BOSTON ABUSE CASES

BOSTON -- Eighty-eight people who say they were molested by Roman Catholic priests will get $5,000 to $200,000 each, with the amounts to be determined by an arbitrator, under an agreement announced Thursday by the Boston Archdiocese.
The arbitration hearings are scheduled to begin next week.
Before the plaintiffs agreed to arbitration, the archdiocese had offered to settle with them for an average of $75,000 each. That figure is less than half the average amount paid to 554 plaintiffs in a 2003 settlement.
"They are extremely disappointed by the low settlement offer made by the archdiocese, but they realize they should try to obtain some type of closure and move on with their lives," said lawyer Mitchell Garabedian, who represents 28 of the 88 claimants.