The Archdiocese of Chicago recently settled out of court with nine people who accused eight Chicago-area priests of sexually abusing them decades ago.
The settlements, totaling $5.4 million, were all reached in the last two weeks, according to the attorneys representing the victims.
“Nobody’s paying that kind of money for something that didn’t happen,” said Marc Pearlman, one of the victim’s attorneys, during a Thursday news conference announcing the settlements. “This is validation that it happened.”
The allegations date as far back as the early 1970s and as recently as the late 1990s. The victims’ ages at the time of the abuse ranged from 6 to 14 years old.
The list of accused priests, most of whom have died, and their Chicago-area parishes are:
- Michael Cepon, St. Mary of the Assumption Church, Chicago
- Russell Romano, Quigley Preparatory Seminary South High School, Chicago
- Clement Carroll, Our Lady of Peace School, Chicago
- William Devereux, St. Martha of Bethany Church, Morton Grove
- James Sayers, St. Joseph Parish/St. John Neumann Parish, Homewood
- Norbert Mayday, Our Lady of the Ridge, Chicago Ridge
- David Braun, St. Francis Xavier Campus of Saints JFX School, Wilmette
- William O’Connor, St. Paul Catholic Church, Chicago Heights
Four of the eight priests — Cepon, Carroll, Sayers and O’Connor — are not listed on the archdiocese’s list of credibly accused clergy members. Two of the settlements involved allegations against Mayday.
In a statement, the Archdiocese said the time frame of the settlements is “consistent with the large majority of claims coming forward today.”
“We have paid more than $400 million to survivors and continue to ask for survivors to come forward,” the statement added. “They will be received with dignity and compassion.”
The two firms representing the eight victims — Jeff Anderson & Associates and Pearlman and Anderson — have been handling sexual abuse settlements for over 25 years. They’ve represented hundreds of victims and secured over $130 million in settlements.
Attorney Melissa Anderson speaks at the podium during a press conference at The Wit Hotel on Thursday, detailing nine new clergy abuse settlements and the launch of the Catholic Clergy Offender Finder tool. Also pictured are (from left) attorneys Jeff Anderson and Marc Pearlman, and survivor Mike Shereck.
Victor Hilitski, Victor Hilitski/For the Sun-Times
“What these settlements represent to our clients is some sort of measure of justice,” said Melissa Anderson, one of the other victim’s attorneys. “And our hope with all of our clients is that by the time we’re able to resolve their case, they’re in a better place at the end than they were at the beginning.”
The victims’ legal team also unveiled a new searchable database documenting the Catholic clergy members accused of sexual abuse or misconduct involving minors worldwide.