Fairbanks Catholic diocese creates new abuse settlement plan
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A September ruling by federal bankruptcy judge Donald McDonald removed Continental Insurance Co. from participating in the settlement and prompted the revised plan that would provide victims and creditors approximately $11 million.
The diocese proposes to raise the money by selling essential “ministry properties” such as the chancery, Catholic Schools of Fairbanks and the Kobuk Center/Residence to the diocese’s endowment fund in exchange for $7.5 million.
The endowment consists of restricted money received from donors and earnings, and is estimated to be worth about $14 million, said Robert Hannon, diocesan chancellor. It is not included in the reorganization plan.
An additional half-million dollars would be provided by the 46 participating parishes of the sprawling missionary diocese, which extends north of the Alaska Range to the Arctic Ocean.
Other diocesan properties, including Pilgrim Hot Springs, would be sold to the public, providing several million dollars that would be combined with about $1 million from other insurers, said Kasey Nye, a Tucson attorney representing the diocese.
The Catholic Bishop of Northern Alaska, Donald Kettler, said in a written statement that the new plan is an effort to compensate claimants and “to bring resolution and healing to victims.”
“We also seek to sustain vital ministries that bring comfort to villages and communities all across our diocese. I believe this revised plan allows us to do both of those things,” he said.
Ronnie Rosenberg, litigation coordinator for the diocese, calls the revised plan “a creative juggling and balancing act to get actual cash on the table and pay people.”
“We could litigate this for years and it would dissipate any financial resource for the victims,” Rosenberg said.
“This (bankruptcy) is not the kind of lawsuit you win or lose for anybody, it is more about coming up with a plan that provides justice and enables things to progress into the future.”
The most recent revision differs from a plan filed in April 2009 that offered claimants $8.6 million in cash, to be raised by mortgaging or selling church properties, fundraising and donor appeals. At the time, it was estimated that insurance would pay more than $20 million.
The nationwide financial downturn and the September court ruling eliminating Continental Insurance for lack of coverage evidence entered into the diocese’s revised plan.
Skeptics might find the plan self-serving since the diocese essentially is buying some of its own properties with endowment funds to keep them from being sold publicly.
“We’ve researched this. We believe it is legal,” Nye said.
“We feel this is in the best interest of creditors, the diocese and parishes as well. This plan really represents a heartfelt attempt and our very best efforts to achieve a finality and lasting settlement.”
If a settlement is reached, Nye said, abuse victims also have the opportunity to file future claims from two other insurance companies for compensation of abuse.
An attorney for the creditors could not be reached for comment.
Contact staff writer Mary Beth Smetzer at 459-7546.
“You may have missed it, but cases of priest-child-abuse h(ave) been reported in the news media for a number of years in Canada, Ireland, European and South American countries. Your concern for this rotten to the core church don’t impress me.”
You’re right, I haven’t heard about it. OK, for the sake of argument, let’s say I believe you – so what? Same argument applies, Canada, Ireland, the European and South American Countries that you mention all have intact systems of law. I suspect that Pedophilia is also a crime in each of those countries as well.
I am not convinced that the Church is, as you say, “Rotten to the Core” and as for your ‘irritation’ with my concern? I really don’t care what you think either.
abuse has been reported in the news media for a
number of years in canada, ireland,euorpean and south american countries. Your concern for this
rotten to the core church dont impress me .
Agree. So, find those who are guilty of either committing the crime or of covering up the crimes of others and charge them.
“You cannot separate out the good from the bad when the corruption and lawbreaking is taking place all over the world…”
It happened all over the world? Prove it! I know there were cases in Alaska and there were cases in various places down in the lower-48 but all over the world? Perhaps, but you need to document that allegation.
“Since monetary compensation is the only redress allowed in our justice system to the abused…”
No, it’s not the only redress for Child Abuse; that is a crime in every state in the United States I’m almost certain. Further, the Statute of Limitations usually runs 7 to 10 years after the ‘realization’ that a crime was committed against them. That means if they are 38 years old and suddenly remember (under hypnosis for instance) that they were molested when they were 7 or 8 years old, they can prefer charges TODAY!
I do agree that, “(W)e must insist they stop their foot-dragging and end this sordid affair!!”
BUT that means we charge the guilty with the crimes they’ve committed – NOT disassemble the structure of the Church because a small percentage of priests were pedophiles and another small percentage of priests and bishops concealed the crimes of the first group. If you know who they are, charge them! I don’t care if a pedophile is 90 years old when he is discovered, try them, convict them, and PUT THEM IN PRISON! I ALSO DON’T CARE IF IT’S A BISHOP, IF YOU CAN PROVE HE CONDONED OR CONCEALED PEDOPHILIA PUT HIM IN PRISON TOO! But first, PROVE IT!
assign to another area where their crimes are
unknown,then they are as guilty as the child
abusers . You cannot seperate out the good from
the bad when the corruption and lawbreaking is
taking place all over the world, not just here in
alaska. Since monetary comensation is the only
redress allowed in our justice system to the
abused we must insist they stop their footdragging and end this sorid affair!!
My point exactly; the present Pope has been in that position what? Two years? Are you psychic? You know that he and the "rest of the priests" knew all about the criminal behavior when it was happening?
I agree completely that those who were guilty should be searched out and tried but because of the nature of their hierarchy, I don't think that's going to happen. I don't think it can happen and I don't think it's right to punish those who didn't do anything by stripping them of their place of comfort and refuge. I don't think it is right to kick the ones who never touched a child - priests and parishners - out of the facilities that you would 'confiscate' from the Church!
Just like there are occasionally old (usually very old) concentration camp survivors who occasionally recognize someone on the street that they knew two or three life-times ago in another reality (a time of terror and unbelievable horror), I think when there are occasionally some today who recognizes a single priest from those former times who committed not only a sin against God but a Crime against a child.
When that happens, let them press charges and then let the authorities investigate, and if applicable charge and prosecute, and seek justice that way.
to me it's not at all about revenge, or an attitude about 'organized religion'.
It's about responsibility. This church [and others] hierarchy has/had a responsibility to their members/parishers/'flock', to ensure that the individual priests that they endorsed, empowered, and assigned were, *at a minimum* not a detriment and threat to their communities. Not only did the church hierarchy not live up to that responsibility, they actually overlooked, protected, enabled, and aided and abetted criminal activity against children under their authority, whose parents had placed faith and trust in their oversight.
My remarks are not about 'catholics' in general, and they are not about the 'average' [probably the majority] catholic priest[s] or function[s].
Should Hitler and his governing group been allowed to retain authority in the German State, had they survived? Or where the crimes against humanity sufficient to justify the [forcable] removal and disolution of his power base? Granted, Hitler actually ordered the commission of crimes, while popes and the catholic hierarchy has only protected and enabled, but it has been world-wide, has untold thousands of victims of the most vulnerable, and has gone on for how long? We have at least 50 yrs record of victims speaking out here.
David Clohessy, national director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790), SNAPnetwork.org, SNAPclohessy@aol.com
I suspect that if I had been molested as a child, I would never enter a Church again (Catholic or any other). I do believe the Catholic Church must ‘atone’ for its sins (or in this instance, its crimes against children) but to dismantle the entire institution? Sorry, I don’t agree. I don’t know how many ‘Pedophile Priests’ there were – dozens? Hundreds? I also don’t know how many Children were molested – hundreds certainly? Thousands? Tens of Thousands? For every priest that molested a child, there were dozens who didn’t. I suspect that most of them didn’t even know about the molestations at the time they occurred; those who made the decision to conceal these hideous crimes are mostly old men and they are few in number (at least, they are few in number now). Should they be pursued and prosecuted to the full extent of the Law? Absolutely! There should never be a Statute of Limitations on the Genocide committed by the Nazis of Hitler’s Germany and there shouldn’t be one – I think – for the Rape of Innocence conducted by these Pedophile Priests but to dismantle their Church?
Sorry, they’ve also done good things – like set up Soup Kitchens for the Hungry and the Homeless. They’ve also set up Charities that provided ‘serviceable used clothing’ to those who couldn’t afford new coats, scarves, or gloves when it got cold in the winter time. They’ve also – the ‘good ones’ – also served as the ‘Consciences’ for their wavering and wondering ‘flocks’ (telling this one, ‘Spending most of the night at the tavern when your wife and children sit home alone night after night, is not right...” or that one, “Walking the street at night is not going to help; come and have a cup of coffee with me and let’s see if we can figure out something else…” For every one that you find who has been hurt by one of the ‘bad’ ones, I would suspect that there are dozens more who’ve been helped by the ‘good’ ones. This mad rush to destroy the Church has more to do with a desire to destroy organized religion than it has to do with punishing the guilty. It also strikes me an another attempt to do “Reparations” years after the damage was done; yes, there is room for justice but too many who post here are not looking for justice, they are looking for revenge.
assets no matter what fund they want to squirrel
it away in and should be available to settle their legal responsibilites for the raping of
small children by their priests and the bishops
hiding and protecting these criminals. The church should not be allowed to set the limits of
their responsibilities. The court needs to stop
these type of actions and start to instruct the
church to begin to sell off and settle up without
any more delaying tactics.
This is an institution that has, *world-wide*, institutionally enabled and protected the abuse of innocent children for untold decades upon decades.
It should not be allowed to continue to exist.
Let the pope sell off the Vatican's gold and treasure hoard to help those his institution has injured, and support his 'flock'.
Let decent christians find some other means of support for their faith. This church has proved itself unworthy, and has led many very far astray from Christ's teachings.
And this church [catholic] is certainly not alone. The behavior of other churches [in Ruby, or St Paul, as examples] is no more decent.FVUTAF