Photo by Kevin Sweeney Bishop John M. LeVoir of the New Ulm Diocese speaks at the Diocesan offices after the hearing approving the Diocese’s Chapter 11 reorganization plan providing $34 million in reparations for victims of diocesan sex abuse.

NEW ULM — A $34 million settlement with survivors of clerical sex abuse in the New Ulm Diocese was approved Tuesday in a hearing before a federal bankruptcy court judge.

Judge Robert Kressel presided over the final hearing on New Ulm Diocese’s Chapter 11 reorganization plan, held at the Brown County Courthouse. The plan was approved by the 93 survivors of clerical sex abuse who had filed suit against the diocese between 2013 and 2016, while the Minnesota Child Victims Act allowed civil lawsuits to be filed beyond the statute of limitations in cases of sexual abuse when the victims were under 18.

The plan contains the financial settlement terms, and also directs the diocese to adopt 17 child protection protocols governing how the diocese will handle clergy who have a pending credible or substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor. The wide ranging protocols describe how the diocese should provided training to its employees, adopts a whistleblower policy, prohibits diocesan employees from being alone with any unrelated minor, provides means of public disclosure and mandates reporting of incidents to law enforcement.

The $34 million in the settlement includes $26 million in payments from the diocese’s insurance companies, $7 million from the diocese, and $1 million from the 66 parishes in the diocese.

Bishop John M. LeVoir testified during the hearing that the diocese sold some of it land and took out a mortgage on the Diocesan center in New Ulm to cover its portion of the settlement. Parishes have been assessed amounts determined by a formula. The money is expected to be in place with a couple of weeks after the agreement takes effect.

Jeff Anderson, the attorney who represented many of the abuse victims in their lawsuits, said the Committee of Creditors who have been negotiating with the diocese has hired an allocator, who has reviewed the claims of all the victims, and will be making a determination of how the funds will be distributed.

A portion of the funds are being set aside as well for any victims of clerical sex abuse who may come after the agreement is completed. Bishop LeVoir said he felt there should be some compensation for those who have been unable to come forward because of the trauma they have suffered because of the abuse. The Creditors Committee agreed, and both sides provided funds for future claimants.

During his testimony in the hearing, Bishop LeVoir issued an apology to the survivors of abuse, several of whom were in the audience in the courtroom.

“I cannot say enough how sorry I am for what you have gone through and for what was taken from you. It is my hope that settlement of this case will bring you some measure of healing and peace. I pray for this daily, knowing that we can never truly compensate you for the pain you’ve suffered and understanding that it may be hard for you to trust the intentions of a church that broke its sacred trust with you.

“I want to thank survivors of abuse for coming forward. Your courage forced us Church leaders to humbly examine what we and our predecessors did wrong, admit to what we did and failed to do and take needed steps to prevent future abuse. It took the persistence of those harmed by abuse to ensure the Church acted, when we should have taken responsibility, shared the truth and done this on our own. For that, too, I apologize.”

Three of the survivors, who served on the Creditors Committee, spoke, often emotionally, about the abuse they suffered and how it has affected them.

“There’s no amount of compensation that can make up for the damage we have suffered,” said Steven Condon of Texas. He spoke of the 50 years of emotional turmoil he has suffered, the difficulties he has had in his relationships, and added, “All my ills can be attributed to one man who was supposed to know right from wrong.”

He said he will always carry the memories with him, but “my story is not the worst,” he said.

Mary Nelson, of Marshall, spoke of the abuse she suffered at a very young age, and how it has affected her ability to form solid relationships, even with her children.

“It should never have happened to me,” she said. But was even worse was that the priest who molested her was allowed to keep doing it, being moved around from one parish to another, to another diocese, and finally, when he was removed from the priesthood, was allowed to move to work in an orphanage in Guatemala.

“These protocols in this agreement need to happen all over, throughout the church,” said Nelson. “We need to remember, to make sure it will never happen again. We need to change.”

Bruce Doney from Lakeville, said, “No one knows, or will ever know, what we have had to endure over the past 50 years.”

“We were strong enough to come forward, but what about those who were not? It is reprehensible that the church allowed it to happen, that it moved these priests around and let it happen again.”

Judge Kressel added toward the end of the hearing that this may be the end of the reorganization case, but it should not be the end of the matter. This should always be a part of the church’s history, it should never be put behind us.

Bishop LeVoir, under questioning from Anderson, vowed to the survivors that the diocese would rigorously pursue the protocols to protect children. Many of them are already in place, and rest will be instituted shortly.

After the hearing, Anderson praised the survivors for their strength and courage. He said that thanks to their courage, the diocese will be taking actions to prevent this from happening again. He said they had forced the release of a list of credibly accused priests, and the release of more files that is office is going through, and will be releasing to the public.

In a press conference Tuesday afternoon, Bishop LeVoir offered another apology, and vowed the “sins of the past” would not be forgotten.

“The Diocese of New Ulm and the Catholic Church must do everything possible to protect the vulnerable so that this tragedy never happens again… This is our responsibility, not as a one-time obligation or as a simple set of requirements to meet, but as an ongoing commitment to answering the call to protect all of God’s children and firmly establish and maintain safe environments throughout Church ministry.”

Bishop LeVoir was asked what he would say to his predecessors if he could talk to them now.

“Back in those days, 20, 30, 40 years ago, the environment was so different,” Bishop LeVoir said. “I remember Archbishop Roach, when I was a priest in the archdiocese, called all the priests together — this was probably the late ’80s, early ’90s, and he said there was a priest or two who had got into trouble, and we had consulted with psychiatrists and psychologists, and they tell us they can be healed, so that’s what we’re going to do. He followed the best advice possible.

“That’s the only experience I’ve had with that. I don’t know what I would say. But I do know that what we are doing now is the right thing,” Bishop LeVoir said.