Panel chosen to represent victims in Boy Scouts bankruptcy

Panel chosen to represent victims in Boy Scouts bankruptcy

SeattlePI.com

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WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — A lawyer for the Boy Scouts of America apologized to victims of sexual abuse by scout leaders Wednesday before the selection of an official committee to represent tort claimants in the Boy Scouts' bankruptcy case.

Nine men who say they were sexually abused as children were selected to serve on the committee after nearly eight hours of closed-door interviews by representatives of the U.S. trustee's office.

"The most difficult decision we had to make today was who not to put on the committee," David Buchbinder, a trial attorney with the trustees office, told a packed room of abuse survivors and attorneys. "We admire the courage of every single one of you."

The committee will represent the interests of potentially thousands of sexual abuse survivors seeking compensation for their suffering.

A separate official committee was appointed to represent the interests of other unsecured creditors, such as suppliers, vendors and pensioners. Members of that committee are the Girl Scouts of America, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., Pearson Education, former BSA executive Roger Ohmstede, and Lion Brothers, an apparel brand manufacturer that provides merit badges and patches.

The Boy Scouts filed for bankruptcy protection last month in an effort to halt hundreds of individual lawsuits and create a huge compensation fund for men who were molested as youngsters decades ago by scoutmasters or other leaders.

"I again want to offer our very deep apology for any suffering that you have encountered on account of scouting," Boy Scouts attorney Jessica Boelter said before the committee selection process began. "We deeply regret any bad things that have happened to people in this room."

More than 12,000 boys have been molested by 7,800 abusers since the 1920s,...

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