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A4 U.S. NEWS
Tuesday 17 November 2020
About 90K sex abuse claims filed in Boy Scouts bankruptcy

By DAVID CRARY resenting the councils has
AP National Writer been negotiating what
NEW YORK (AP) — Close to they will pay in.
90,000 sexual abuse claims Under the terms of the
have been filed against the case, no additional sex
Boy Scouts of America as abuse claims can be filed
the Monday deadline ar- against the Boy Scouts af-
rived for submitting claims ter Monday.
in the organization’s bank- However, attorney Ja-
ruptcy case. son Amala, part of a legal
The number far exceeds team representing more
the initial projections of than 1,000 claimants, said
lawyers across the United new claims still could filed
States who have been sign- against local councils in
ing up clients since the Boy some states that have vic-
Scouts filed for bankruptcy tim-friendly statute-of-limi-
protection in February in tations laws, such as New
the face of hundreds of York, New Jersey and Cali-
lawsuits alleging decades- fornia.
old sex abuse by Scout Lawyer Paul Mones, who
leaders. won a $19.9 million sex
“We are devastated by the In this Feb. 18, 2020, file photo, Boy Scouts of America uniforms are displayed in the retail store at abuse verdict against the
number of lives impacted the headquarters for the French Creek Council of the Boy Scouts of America in Summit Township, Boy Scouts in Oregon in
by past abuse in Scouting Pa. 2010, said painstaking work
and moved by the bravery Associated Press lies ahead to determine
of those who have come The Boy Scouts’ insurers also mitment.” abuse claims date to the which insurers were respon-
forward,” the Boy Scouts will be contributing, as will The Boy Scouts said it “in- 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s, be- sible for coverage of the
said in a statement. “We the Boy Scouts’ roughly 260 tentionally developed an fore the Boy Scouts adopt- national organization and
are heartbroken that we local councils and compa- open, accessible process ed criminal background the local councils over the
cannot undo their pain.” nies that insured them in to reach survivors and help checks, abuse prevention decades in which abuse
A few hours before the the past. them take an essential step training for all staff and vol- occurred.
5 p.m. EST deadline, the Andrew Van Arsdale, a toward receiving compen- unteers, and a rule that two He said the eventual pay-
number of claims totaled lawyer with a network sation.” or more adult leaders must ments are likely to vary,
88,500, lawyers said. called Abused in Scouting, “The response we have be present during activities. depending on the severity
Eventually, the proceed- said it has signed up about seen from survivors has Among the contentious is- and duration of the abuse.
ings in federal bankruptcy 16,000 claimants. He said been gut-wrenching,” the sues still to be addressed “The number of claims is
court will lead to the cre- that number doubled after organization added. “We in the bankruptcy case is mind-boggling,” Mones
ation of a compensation the Boy Scouts, under the are deeply sorry.” the extent to which the Boy said, noting that many
fund to pay out settlements supervision of a bankruptcy The bankruptcy has been Scouts’ local councils con- abuse victims likely have
to abuse survivors whose judge, launched a nation- painful for the 110-year-old tribute to the compensa- not come forward. “It’s
claims are upheld. wide advertising campaign Boy Scouts, which has been tion fund. chilling in terms of the
The potential size of the on Aug. 31 to notify victims a pillar of American civic life In its bankruptcy filing, the amount of horror that was
fund is not yet known and that they had until Nov. 16 for generations. Its finances national organization said experienced.”
will be the subject of com- to seek compensation. were already strained by the councils, which have Some of the claims may be
plex negotiations. The na- “They spent millions trying sex abuse settlements and extensive property hold- hard to verify, if they involve
tional organization is ex- to encourage people to declining membership — ings and other assets, are abuse allegations against
pected to contribute a sub- come forward,” Van Ars- now below 2 million from a separate legal entities and volunteer Scout leaders
stantial portion of its assets, dale said. “Now, the ques- peak of over 4 million in the should not be included as whose names don’t ap-
which include financial in- tion is whether they can 1970s. debtors in the case. pear in official rosters from
vestments and real estate. make good on their com- Most of the pending sex An ad hoc committee rep- long ago, Mones said.q
Jetliner hits brown bear while landing in southeast Alaska

YAKUTAT, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska Airlines jetliner struck a brown bear while landing
early Saturday evening, killing the animal and causing damage to the plane, officials
said.
None of the passengers or crew members on board the plane were injured during
the accident at the Yakutat Airport in southeast Alaska, The Anchorage Daily News
reported.
The Boeing 737-700 killed the brown bear sow, but a cub thought to be about 2 years
old was uninjured, Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities spokes-
man Sam Dapcevich said.
Airport crew members had cleared the runway about 10 minutes before the flight was
expected to land, Dapcevich said. The plane landed after dark and crews followed
normal procedures for runway checks.
The staff did not see signs of wildlife during the check, but the pilots spotted the two
This early Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020, photo provided by R E bears crossing the runway as the jet slowed after landing, Dapcevich said.
Johnson shows an Alaska Airlines jet that struck a brown bear
while landing in the early evening the day before, killing the “The nose gear missed the bears, but the captain felt an impact on the left side after
animal and causing damage to the plane, at Yakutat Airport the bears passed under the plane,” Alaska Airlines said in a statement.
in Yakutat, Alaska. The pilots saw the bear lying about 20 feet (6 meters) from the center of the runway as
Associated Press the plane taxied to a parking area just before 6:30 p.m., the airline said.q