St Louis Archdiocese settles 18 abuse suits

The St. Louis Archdiocese has agreed to pay more than $2 million to settle 18 civil cases of sexual abuse, according to lawyers representing the accusers.

Edward Goldenhersh, an archdiocesan lawyer, said Wednesday that using the word "settle" is "wordsmithing."

"They've brought claims and I can beat them in court, and they know that," he said.

At least 30 more cases against the archdiocese are pending, according to Susan Carlson, one of the attorneys representing the accusers. Those cases probably will be mediated in the same way over the coming months. Attorneys would not say exactly how much each accuser received in each settlement.

In addition to the $2 million, the archdiocese agreed to provide "safe touch" education to all children in the archdiocese...

Not sure what they mean by the "safe touch" program.

Article here.