NEW YORK -- Facing a possible bankruptcy as a result of sex-abuse litigation, the Boy Scouts of America issued a new apology Tuesday to survivors of abuse and announced plans for expanded services to support them.
The Boy Scouts are teaming up in a five-year partnership with 1in6, a national nonprofit that provides various resources and support services to male survivors of sexual abuse. The organization's name derives from studies concluding that about one in six men in the U.S. experience sexual abuse.
The BSA said the partnership will enable 1in6 to expand its 24/7 web-based helpline chat service, which helps survivors connect quickly to a trained advocate for abuse victims.
Matthew Ennis, CEO of 1in6, said the Boy Scouts of America was making a financial contribution to the partnership, but neither he nor the Boy Scouts would specify the amount. It's unclear how much cash the Boy Scouts of America has on hand to enter into significant ventures at a time when its finances are in turmoil.
The Boy Scouts recently mortgaged its national properties, including the vast Philmont Ranch in New Mexico, to help secure a line of credit, with the properties being used as collateral amid a crush of sex-abuse lawsuits.
Lawyers representing hundreds of men who say they were abused as scouts are predicting that the Boy Scouts will soon file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which potentially would provide a centralized, court-supervised process for handling claims while enabling the organization to remain in operation.
The organization's finances have been strained by sex-abuse settlements for several years, and the situation worsened after New York, Arizona, New Jersey and California enacted bills last year making it easier for victims of long-ago abuse to file claims. Teams of lawyers across the U.S. have been signing up clients by the hundreds to join lawsuits against the Boy Scouts of America.
One of those lawyers, Seattle-based Mike Pfau, questioned whether the 1in6 partnership announcement was a "publicity attempt" linked to an impending bankruptcy declaration.
"Sadly, this is extraordinarily late in the game, particularly given the Boy Scouts knew that perpetrators had been infiltrating their ranks for 100 years," said Pfau, referring to files of suspected molesters that the Boy Scouts of America began compiling in the 1920s.
The Boy Scouts of America said the partnership will allow 1in6 to expand the number of online support groups for men who were sexually abused from two to five each week.
The organization said the new arrangement was expected to continue regardless of how it deals with its current financial crisis.
"We sincerely apologize to anyone who was harmed in Scouting," said Roger Mosby, the Boy Scouts of America's president and CEO. "In addition to implementing strong policies to prevent abuse, we are dedicated to supporting victims when and how they need it."
The Boy Scouts of America says it will not comment on "speculation and rumor," but has not ruled out the possibility of a bankruptcy filing.
One of Pfau's clients, Ralph Morse, described the new partnership as "a step in the right direction."
Morse is suing the Boy Scouts of America for abuse he allegedly suffered in the 1960s at the hands of a scoutmaster in upstate New York.
A Section on 02/12/2020