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In all, 95,000 victims of sexual abuse that took place in the Boy Scouts of America had come forward last night, the deadline for receiving compensation from the organization, an attorney for the victims said.
“As of today, 95,000 claims have been filed,” attorney Paul Moses told AFP.
The figure, which reveals the scale of alleged abuses committed over decades by scout leaders, dwarfs the roughly 11,000 complaints believed to have been filed in recent years against the Catholic Church.
“It is by far the largest sex abuse scandal in the United States,” Moses said.
“We are devastated by the number of lives affected by past exploration abuses and touched by the courage of those who have come forward,” the exploration organization said in a statement.
“We are heartbroken that we cannot undo their pain.
“We intentionally develop an open and accessible process to reach out to survivors and help them take an essential step toward receiving compensation. The response we have seen from survivors has been heartbreaking. We are deeply sorry,” added the BSA.
The group, founded in 1910, has 2.2 million members between the ages of five and 21.
Shaken by allegations of sexual abuse, the BSA filed for bankruptcy in February in an effort to prevent claims from the settlement from directly affecting the organization and instead funneled them into a compensation fund.
The group, which is valued at more than $ 1 billion, has not said how much they intend to spend through this fund.
Disclosures of misconduct in US exploration circles drew widespread attention in 2012 when the Los Angeles Times published internal documents detailing decades of sexual abuse.
Some 5,000 “perversion files” were uncovered, identifying as many alleged culprits among the scout leaders, including scout chiefs and troop leaders.
Most incidents were never reported to authorities, and the BSA took it upon themselves to remove the accused offenders.
Negotiations will now begin between the victims, the BSA and their insurers to determine the amounts to be paid.
BSA “will have to sell some of its properties,” Moses said, adding that it was a “very complicated” process that could take a year or two.
Mr. Moses in 2010 earned $ 20 million for a former Boy Scout abused by his leader.
Several cases have been filed against the BSA since 2012, especially after several states extended the statute of limitations on child sexual assault allegations.
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