Seattle Archdiocese pays $7 million to settle sex abuse claims

SEATTLE -- The Seattle Archdiocese has agreed to pay nearly $7 million to settle claims by six men who say priests sexually abused them when they were children.

The Seattle Times reports the Seattle Archdiocese admitted no wrongdoing as part of the latest settlements, all of which were paid within the past two months.

The six men each claim they were victimized as children decades ago by priests assigned to churches and schools throughout Western Washington. Each man also claimed the archdiocese failed to protect him from abusive priests despite knowing the dangers they posed.

All of the accused priests — Theodore Marmo, James McGreal, Paul Conn, John Forrester, Thomas Pitsch and Michael Cody — were identified on the archdiocese's list of credibly accused priests and clergy published in January 2016.