A press conference is being held this morning to announce a $166.1 million settlement for victims of abuse by Jesuit priests on reservations in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.

The Tamaki Law Firm filed the lawsuit in February 2009. It represents about 450 Indian victims, who suffered abuse from the 1940s through the 1990s in the Oregon Province of the Society of Jesus.

“I kept the sexual molestation hidden in the dark, in my soul, for years and years. Finally, when I came forward and saw that others did too, it was as if the blanket that had hidden our secret was pulled off and we could move into the light again," plaintiff Katherine Mendez, 53, a member of the Yakama Nation, said in a press release.

The press conference is scheduled to be held in Yakima, Washington, at 10am.

Related Stories:
Ken Bear Chief: Victims of sex abuse must be able to share stories (9/6)
Colville woman heading to Italy to discuss church abuse (3/31)
Seattle Weekly: Native victims sue over priest abuse (2/24)
Indian abuse victims face deadline to sue (10/9)
Group for abuse victims on Montana reservation (09/22)
Ken Bear Chief: Indian victims of Jesuit abuse (9/16)