SF diocese settles a dozen abuse lawsuits for $16 million

San Francisco, California –

The Archdiocese of San Francisco has agreed to pay more than $16 million to settle a dozen lawsuits alleging sexual abuse by a once-popular priest.

Attorneys announced the agreements Friday, days before the first of several planned trials was set to begin with plaintiffs alleging they were abused by the late Rev. Joseph Pritchard. While the settlement works out to an average of $1.3 million for each plaintiff, attorneys said the individual amounts varied and would not be disclosed.

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The settlement is roughly comparable to a similar agreement reached last month with 10 other plaintiffs who said they were molested by Pritchard when he was pastor at St. Martin of Tours parish in San Jose.

"Money can't make up for what this guy did to us," said one of the men, 47-year-old Dennis Kavanaugh of San Jose. He said he went to court on behalf of himself and his friends, as well as for their parents, many of whom were wracked with guilt when they learned of the abuse years after it occurred.

In March, a jury awarded Kavanaugh $437,000 after deciding the church should have been aware of the abuse. That amount was included in Friday's announcement.

In a short statement, San Francisco Archbishop William Levada again apologized to victims.

Read the article at SignOnSanDiego.com Dated July 9, 2005

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