The scale of the alleged sexual abuse is horrifying. Now, the settlement is historic.
Sixty-thousand thousand former Boy Scouts have reached a $850 million dollar settlement with the 110-year-old organization. That’s among the largest settlements in a child sex abuse case in American history, and it could grow once insurance money is added.
“It is important that people see this dollar amount, and know this is not the end; this is just the beginning,” Paul Mones, one of the attorneys representing the survivors, told USA TODAY. “There are billions of dollars in insurance money, and the fight to get that money is continuing.”
If the money is evenly distributed, each victim would receive approximately $10,000. According to NPR, “Another aspect of the deal requires nonmonetary commitments to abuse victims, including youth protection measures, a reporting system, formation of a Child Protection Committee, and information sharing related to abuse claims.”
The abuse stretches back to the 1960s. Many of those impacted are in their 60s and 70s.
“As a former Boy Scout who is a sexual abuse survivor, I am gratified that the Boy Scouts are taking responsibility for the sexual abuse that occurred to me and others that we have had to live with for decades,” one victim who is 65 and lives in the New York area said. “This acknowledgment by the Boy Scouts will start the process of healing for many of us who have suffered.”
But another lawyer who represents victims called the proposal a “rotten, chump deal.”
Attorney Tim Kosnoff added, “You’re talking about clients who, in some cases, were anally raped for years ….[The settlement] is an insult to all of the men who found the courage to file claims and participated in this process.”
The Boy Scouts of America faced over 275 lawsuits and were forced to file for bankruptcy protection last year. The $850 million deal “ensures we have the overwhelming support of survivors” to emerge from bankruptcy, the Boy Scouts said.
As part of the settlement, local chapters of the organization, which hold the bulk of its wealth, are contributing to the compensation. From The Wall Street Journal:
Assets being contributed by the Boy Scouts include cash, artwork, property and the surplus proceeds from an overfunded executive pension, court records show. The settlement amount could be reduced if the bankruptcy case drags on longer than expected.
Insurers for the organization have balked at the settlement.
“Without a single commitment from any of its insurers, the Boy Scouts are jeopardizing both the continuation of their mission, as well as the fair and more timely compensation of all legitimate victims of abuse,” a spokesman for Hartford Financial Services Group said. Hartford prefers a $650 deal previously agreed to and now abandoned. “We’re prepared to vigorously defend our positions in the Boy Scouts’ bankruptcy case and related litigation,” the spokesman added.
More from The Wall Street Journal:
The Boy Scouts have apologized for the lives twisted by childhood trauma and said that at least 85% of reported incidents of abuse predate youth-protection protocols put in place three decades ago. The Boy Scouts, founded in 1910, have been plagued by reports of sexual misconduct by employees and volunteers for decades, but it wasn’t until last year when the organization asked victims to step forward that the full scope became clear.
