$50,000 payments to children of serial killer Robert Pickton’s victims

VANCOUVER – Families of the victims of serial killer Robert Pickton will each receive $50,000 to settle their legal action over a botched criminal investigation.

Lawyer Jason Gratl says the settlement involves 13 plaintiffs who filed civil action against the provincial and federal governments, the City of Vancouver and several RCMP officers.

Gratl says 11 family members have accepted the proposal, one person is expected to respond shortly and B.C.’s public guardian must approve a settlement accepted by a boy who has not yet turned 18.

Gratl says although the deal is final with the government defendants, the families are still pursuing wrongful death lawsuits against Pickton and his brother David.

The report from a 2012 public inquiry included a recommendation for financial compensation to the children of 33 women whose DNA or remains were found on Pickton’s farm after he was arrested in 2002.

Pickton was convicted of six counts of second-degree murder and is serving a life sentence with no parole for at least 25 years.