Inside a tense, packed Los Angeles courtroom Monday, more than a dozen men and women rose slowly and stood, some weeping softly, as they were publicly recognized by the court and others as victims of sexual abuse by Roman Catholic clergy.
The moment, which came just after the Los Angeles Archdiocese and plaintiffs' attorneys reached formal agreement on a $660-million settlement in hundreds of clergy abuse cases, provided a dramatic denouement to five years of litigation -- and to what many victims have described as decades of personal anguish.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Wednesday July 18, 2007 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 44 words Type of Material: Correction
Abuse settlement: An article in Tuesday's Section A about the settlement by the Los Angeles Archdiocese of sexual abuse lawsuits said a chair known as a cathedra symbolized Cardinal Roger M. Mahony's authority as a cardinal. The cathedra symbolizes his authority as a bishop.
When plaintiffs' lead attorney Raymond Boucher asked the victims in the downtown courtroom to rise, some did so timidly, and he had to ask again. Once all were standing, the only sound was that of crying, which seemed to become more intense as the moment went on. A few feet away at a table with church attorneys sat Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, his expression somber.
Afterward, dozens of victims, their attorneys and supporters, many still wiping away tears, congratulated and hugged one another.
Spilling outside into a plaza near the courthouse, they spoke with reporters, told their stories and celebrated what some described as a significant -- and bittersweet -- legal victory.
Monday had been what Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Haley J. Fromholz had called "D Day" -- the date set for trials of clergy abuse cases to begin. Instead, the hearing before Fromholz allowed attorneys for both sides to formally confirm that they had reached the $660-million settlement.
Steve Sanchez, who said he was molested at Holy Trinity Church for about a decade, was among those who said they felt vindicated by the settlement.
"I hope that by today's settlement, I am no longer an 'alleged' victim," said Sanchez, who said he was molested by Father Clinton Hagenbach, a parish priest, now deceased.
Sanchez's case was set for trial Monday.
Many other victims, not all of whom could squeeze into the courtroom for the hearing, said they remained bitterly angry over the abuse they suffered and the long delay in reaching a legal resolution.
Many directed their anger at Mahony, who publicly apologized Sunday to those abused. After Monday's hearing, he issued a statement reaffirming his "steadfast commitment" to fighting sexual abuse.
During the hearing, diocesan attorney J. Michael Hennigan alluded to the years it had taken to resolve the case. "First of all, to all the victims who are here, it is our deep regret this took too long," Hennigan said.
