July 2, 2021 – Friday Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel released a statement in response to the $850 million civil settlement announced late on Thursday between the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and more than 60,000 individuals who have sued the organization over alleged sexual abuse. The settlement was announced late Thursday night and is one of the largest sums in US history involving sexual abuse cases.

Nessel’s statement reads:

“This historic settlement is an acknowledgment from the Boy Scouts of America of the pain inflicted on thousands of scouts across the country. While this may bring resolution for those involved in the civil litigation, our criminal work is just beginning in Michigan. We must ensure abusers never again have an opportunity to prey on others, and the best way to achieve that is through a criminal investigation. I continue to encourage people with information related to sexual abuse perpetrated in our state to contact the Department of Attorney General’s Boy Scouts of America investigation hotline. It is our job to secure additional justice for survivors, which in turn will better protect society from criminals who hide behind their positions of authority to abuse others. It doesn’t matter if it occurred last month or years ago-you deserve to be heard and we’re here to listen.”

Last month, Nessel released a public service announcement focused on the latest joint investigation between the Michigan Department of Attorney General and Michigan State Police (MSP), encouraging abuse survivors to share their stories in order to pursue criminal charges.

The agencies first announced the investigation at the beginning of June. At that time, the AG’s office and MSP were working to obtain information surrounding the allegations and asking for the assistance of the public.

By Krystle Holleman, WILX 10
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