MINNEAPOLIS _ The Diocese of St. Cloud will pay $22.5 million to sexual abuse survivors and declare bankruptcy under the terms of a settlement agreement announced Tuesday.
The agreement, subject to a bankruptcy court filing expected in the next few weeks, addresses allegations made against 41 priests by some 70 survivors dating back to the 1950s.
Many of the clerics are now dead. But at least one, the Rev. Antonio Marfori, was in active ministry at the Church of St. Andrew in Elk River when a survivor stepped forward in 2015 to make accusations about past abuse that took place at St. Cloud Cathedral High School in the 1970s. According to attorney Jeff Anderson, the diocese removed Marfori, who has since moved out of the country.
Anderson negotiated the settlement agreement on behalf of abuse survivors, which he said amounts to "validation and affirmation" for those survivors, some of whom first raised their allegations in the 1980s.
"Every single survivor with whom we worked has felt some measure of recovery of power by having come forward to share secrets," said Anderson. "We believe they have made the community safer because of it, and they have been a part of a massive cleanup of a massive cover-up in the Diocese of St. Cloud. It has been a journey born of great tribulation."
In a statement, St. Cloud Bishop Donald Kettler said the diocese is committed to preventing sexual abuse.
"I am particularly grateful to the survivors of abuse for their courage in coming forward and sharing their experiences, and I again apologize on behalf of the Church for the harm they suffered," he said. "I remain committed to assist in the healing of all those who have been hurt, and I hope this is another step in that direction."
In 2014, the St. Cloud diocese released the names of 33 priests who had been credibly accused of sexual abuse. New lawsuits and information boosted that number to 41. The diocese announced in 2018 that it would file for bankruptcy, beginning the negotiations that led to Tuesday's announcement.
