The Diocese of Brooklyn announced on Thursday the creation of a compensation program for victims of clergy sexual abuse.
The Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program, or IRCP, will first provide monetary compensation to survivors who have previously reported abuse by a priest or deacon. Those who come forward with unreported claims will have a chance to register with the program during phase two in October.
The Brooklyn Diocese, which oversees the churches in Brooklyn and Queens, said the funds will come from loans — not parishioners’ collections — and it will keep the survivors’ identities confidential.
A committee, including retired NYPD First Deputy Commissioner Joseph P. Dunne, retired New York State Supreme Court Justice Joseph G. Golia and former president of the Queens Chapter of the American Psychiatric Association Barbara L. Ponieman, will oversee the process. Settlements will be administered by attorneys Kenneth R. Feinberg and Camille S. Biros.
Feinberg said the IRCP was modeled after a similar program established by the New York Archdiocese, which provided compensation to more than 120 survivors.
The State Senate failed to take up a bill this week that would have raised the statute of limitations on child sex abuse lawsuits from the victims’ 23rd birthday to their 50th birthday. The bill has been in the works for nearly a decade and faced strong opposition from religious groups across the state.
Anyone looking for more information about IRCP can log onto BrooklynDiocese-IRCP.com or call 855-796-3463.
