Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - After more than five years of litigation, the Buffalo Diocese agrees to pay out $150 million to sexual abuse survivors as part of their settlement.
Gary Astridge, one of the survivors, shared his thoughts after hearing the news in court.
"In dealing with a lot of survivors, being one myself, the water gets muddied with situations like this. Now it just becomes all about the money. You take $150 million, 33% goes to attorneys. 100,000,000 is left, and that gets divvied up between, you know, 800 plus people. There's really not much there, and it's not money that's going to change anybody's lives," stated Astridge.
Astridge explains that there isn’t enough money to make amends for the damage and trauma that the hundreds of survivors are still dealing with.
"Myself, specifically, being a child and being sexually abused and raped from the ages of seven to 11, it affects you through your whole life, and something inside you goes dead. When I sit here and I listen to what happened today, it's like the church still isn't accountable. Money is something important to them. Okay, we're going to get a piece of that, but no one's accountable. No one's going to prison, stated Astridge. " It's sad. I still struggle to find the real me. Many times I find myself feeling uncomfortable in situations, and I can laugh and try to fit in, to seem like I'm normal, but I truly feel like damaged goods."
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One of the other survivors, Kevin Brun, says he’s disappointed with the offer but hopes it will bring closure to some of the others.
"We spent five years in litigation, $25 million in legal fees to bankruptcy attorneys, and this is the best they could come up with. Personally, I take this as a slap in the face and an insult to survivors. We're letting the diocese off the hook," stated Brun. "I'll thank the attorneys that have represented survivors. They put an enormous amount of time in. I guess this is the best they could come up with at this point."
Richard Brownell, another survivor, says he doesn't believe the church settled the case in a timely manner and sought to redirect the blame.
"I personally think, and I think it's evident, money was moved in preparation for this. This is going on nationally, internationally. That's a constant reminder of the facilitation of pedophiles being moved about in different parishes across the country and across the world. I think they have a very well laid plan. We got the highest percentage with respect to the monies on hand to pay claims. This is way out of line. This is taking way too long," stated Brownell. "They cleaned house in the process and put the blame on the victims."