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SANATA ANA, CALIFORNIA, August 21, 2001: Roman Catholic leaders in Orange and Los Angeles counties agreed to pay $5.2 million to settle a lawsuit accusing a once-popular priest of molestation. Church leaders also agreed to a code of conduct, which would be enforced by a judge, to crack down on Catholic clergymen who prey on children. The settlement, which still needs to be approved by a judge, stems from accusations that Monsignor Michael Harris, 56, molested a 17-year-old Catholic high school student, Ryan DiMaria, in 1991. “I’m very happy with what we got accomplished,” DiMaria, now 28, told The Orange County Register. “I think it will protect a lot of victims in the future,” DiMaria, said Monday. Harris, who declined to be interviewed, has always denied wrongdoing and never has been charged with a crime. However, he agreed to leave the priesthood and has been on inactive leave from the church since 1994. The settlement in DiMaria’s suit against the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and the Diocese of Orange calls for a toll-free number and the creation of a Web site for reporting molestation, as well as for educational pamphlets to be distributed to Catholic churches and schools. It also requires that priests sign agreements not to molest, among other things. DiMaria, a former Santa Margarita Catholic High School student, brought the suit because he claimed that the dioceses turned their backs on the predatory behavior of Harris, who allegedly targeted young men in need of spiritual counseling. The Catholic Church has paid out hundreds of millions of dollars to settle similar lawsuits across the USA.

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