The Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg said yesterday that it has reached an agreement to settle any still-pending historic child sex abuse claims lodged against its priests or other church personnel as part of a plan to end the diocese’s chapter 11 reorganization under federal bankruptcy laws, PennLive.com reported. Final terms of the settlement were not immediately available Thursday night, including the total cost of all payments to creditors. But in a press release, the diocese said the proposed agreement with its creditors calls for creation of a $7.5 million Survivor Compensation Trust to provide financial restitution for survivors of clergy sexual abuse. The fund may also be enlarged through future settlements with diocesan insurance carriers, the church noted. The church said approximately 54 timely filed proofs of claim from clergy abuse survivors were received during the bankruptcy process. That appears to be in addition to 111 survivors separately paid in 2019 by the diocese’s independent Survivor Compensation Program, for a total financial commitment of $12,784,450. The average payout to those accepting the Harrisburg diocese’s offers in that program was about $114,000.
