Western New York Boy Scouts councils may have to sell their properties to contribute to a settlement fund for child sex abuse victims.
Of the approximately 82,500 child sex abuse claims filed against the Boy Scouts of America during its bankruptcy proceedings, almost 400 concern abuse that allegedly took place in New York, according to a recent report by the Buffalo News. There have also been 60 lawsuits filed in western New York, under the Child Victims Act, accusing “at least 38 former Scout volunteers” of child sex abuse.
One claimant is Scott Miller of Hamburg, New York. According to the Buffalo News, Miller has filed an abuse claim in the Boy Scouts bankruptcy proceeding as well as a lawsuit in Erie County, levying allegations against the national Boy Scouts organization, the United Methodist Church, and the Greater Niagara Frontier Council. Miller told the Buffalo News that he’s disappointed with the current settlement proposal under the lates Boy Scouts reorganization plan, which would settle child sex abuse claims with $120 million in funds from the national organization, $425 million in funds from local Boy Scout councils, and “at least $625 million” from the Boy Scouts’ insurers.
