Seattle Archdiocese, Tacoma-area school district settle sex abuse lawsuit for $2.45M

SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle's Catholic Archdiocese and a Tacoma-area school district have agreed to pay a $2.45 million to a man to settle his lawsuit claiming that both institutions allowed a known pedophile teacher to keep working with children.

The Seattle Times reports a man identified as D.W. in the suit — contended that archdiocese officials knew Edward Courtney had sexually abused dozens of schoolchildren when they helped Courtney land a teaching job at Parkland Elementary in 1980.

The suit claimed Courtney repeatedly molested D.W. while he was in fifth and sixth grade, but Franklin Pierce School District officials allegedly failed to remove Courtney or notify police after receiving abuse reports.

The archdiocese agreed to pay $1.5 million and the Franklin Pierce School District agreed to pay $950,000.

Neither organization admitted wrongdoing.

Courtney didn't return a newspaper message seeking comment.