The Catholic Church in San Diego is to pay 144 clerical sex abuse victims a total of $198m (€143m).

This is the second biggest settlement of its kind in US history, the largest being the $660m the LA diocese agreed with 500 victims.

San Diego Bishop Robert Brom said he hoped the settlement would give closure:

The diocese has always been committed to resolving this litigation in a way that fairly compensates these victims of abuse and would still preserve the ongoing ministries and programs of the church.

We pray that this settlement will bring some closure and healing to the years of suffering experience by these victims.

The San Diego diocese filed for bankruptcy protection so it could meet the required compensation. It and four other dioceses filed in the face of civil lawsuits — although a judge had threatened to throw out San Diego’s protection if it didn’t agree sums with the victims.

The settlement comes after four years of talks.

Victims as quoted by the Associated Press:

“We shouldn’t have had to go through all this,” Betty Schneider, 62, of Temecula, told reporters in front of the federal courthouse. She said she was molested as a 10-year-old member of her church choir.

“I have grandkids the same age I was, and I hope all this helps kids to be protected better than we were protected,” she said.

Michael Bang of Atlanta said no settlement could be considered fair.

“They knew all along that I’d been molested, so to put me through this is unconscionable,” he said.

A court will decide exactly how much each person receives, but the average payout will be $1.3m. I really don’t think that’s enough, do you?

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