SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) - Santa Monica will pay $42.6 million to nearly two dozen victims of a city employee and former youth volunteer who killed himself after being charged with molestation, according to a newspaper report.
The City Council on Tuesday agreed to settle lawsuits brought by 23 people who claimed they were sexually abused by Eric Uller dating back decades, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Uller, 50, was found dead in his apartment on the eve of a 2018 court hearing involving charges that he abused four boys aged 12 to 16 between 1986 and 1995.
Uller was a volunteer with the Santa Monica Police Athletic League for decades. He worked for the city as a public safety systems analyst but was placed on administrative leave in 2018.
The settlement also resolves a claim by a woman that she was abused by another PAL volunteer, according to the Times.
Also Tuesday the City Council members approved a Child Protection Resolution to ensure lasting, city-wide measures to detect inappropriate behaviors and prevent abuse, the newspaper said.
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