Sexual abuse victim wins settlement, ritual abuse conference

Sexual abuse victim wins $1.75-million settlement By Norman MacInnes Toronto June 26 2009 Lou Ann Soontiens suffered years of abuse by the late Rev. Charles Sylvestre....A woman who as a girl endured five years of sexual abuse by a priest that ended in a botched abortion has secured a settlement of almost $1.75-million. The Roman Catholic Diocese of London, Ont. has agreed to pay Lou Ann Soontiens $1.745-million to settle her civil sexual assault suit. Costs, when settled, will likely push the total over $2-million....The Soontiens settlement is significant because "it recognizes that childhood sexual assault can carry with it lifelong impacts on an individual's ability to function in society," said Barb Legate of Legate & Associates in London, Ont. who represents 33 of Rev. Charles Sylvestre's victims. http://www.lawyersweekly.ca/index.php?section=article&volume=29&number=8&article=2


conference press release - please post and forward
A conference to help survivors of severe child abuse (ritual abuse) and torture will be held on August 14 - 16, 2009, between 8 - 5 PM Saturday and Sunday at the DoubleTree Hotel near Bradley International Airport, 16 Ella Grasso Turnpike, Windsor Locks, CT 06096 (between Hartford, CT and Springfield, MA). This conference will help educate survivors of this abuse and their helpers. Pre-registration is preferred. For information write S.M.A.R.T., P. O Box 1295, Easthampton, MA 01027-1295 E-mail: smartnews@aol.com, conference information is at: http://ritualabuse.us/smart-conference/