The San Francisco Catholic Archdiocese has agreed to pay $395 million to settle more than 500 lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse by church officials. As part of the settlement, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone will write an apology letter to each survivor.

Settlement Details

The settlement requires the archdiocese to implement child protection and transparency reforms, including creating a list of clergy accused of abuse. This list will detail allegations and the outcomes of investigations. The archdiocese will also be banned from imposing confidentiality agreements that silence survivors.

A committee of survivors will establish protocols for distributing the funds. Each survivor will have the opportunity to submit their story of abuse to receive an equitable distribution based on their unique circumstances.

Margie O’Driscoll, a survivor who sued the archdiocese, said the settlement was hard-fought and puts the responsibility on church officials, not survivors. She expressed hope that the settlement will allow survivors to move forward and find closure.

Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.