Fourteen Delaware men who said they were sexually assaulted as children have reached a $US7 million settlement with three Catholic Church institutions, two of the victims said on Thursday.
The settlement includes nine men who said they were victims of former Capuchin Friar Paul Daleo and five alleged victims of former St. Edmond's Academy lay teacher and wrestling coach John Fleming, the men said.
Daleo also worked at Saint Edmond's Academy in Wilmington.
Matthias Conaty and Jeff Rose, who say they were abused in the late 1970s and early 1980s, announced the settlement outside the office of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington.
In February, the diocese paid a $US77.4 million settlement to 146 victims of sexual abuse, forcing it to declare bankruptcy.
"It's been a painful day, but in some ways it's a day of triumph," Conaty, 43, who wore a chain around his neck with a picture of himself from the period of abuse. "The voice I couldn't use as a little boy was found."
Conaty spearheaded the civil legal action against the church institutions because the statute of limitations for pursuing the case in criminal court had expired.
No one answered the telephone at Daleo's home in New Jersey. Reached at his home in Pennsylvania, Fleming asked how much money the case was settled for and declined to comment further.
During the news conference Rose, 42, who said Fleming abused him in 1983, felt ill and had to be aided by others.
"It's been pretty emotional," he said. "I've kept it to myself for a long time."
Child abuse accusations have rocked the Catholic Church in the United States since 2002, and the church has paid out some $US2 billion in settlements to victims.
In addition to Wilmington, several other Catholic dioceses have filed for bankruptcy because of sexual abuse claims, including Portland, Oregon, Milwaukee, San Diego, Spokane, Washington, and Davenport, Iowa.
According to the Survivor Network of those Abused by Priests advocacy group, the Delaware settlement was with institutions that hired and supervised the accused predators.
Conaty founded Child Victims Voice, an advocacy organization, and encouraged Delaware legislators to adopt the Child Victim's Act of 2007.
The law eliminated the civil statute of limitations on sex abuse and allows a two-year window to file civil suits for victims for whom the statute of limitations had passed, which include the 14 men.
A similar window to report sexual abuse is being considered in other states, including Pennsylvania, where the Penn State scandal will hopefully influence its passing, Conaty said.
At Penn State, Jerry Sandusky, longtime former assistant to football coach Joe Paterno, has been charged with sexually abusing eight boys over more than a decade. The case forced the firing of Paterno and the university president.
