9/11, Va. Tech. mediator to dole out Aurora funds

DENVER (AP) — The mediator who oversaw compensation for victims of the Sept. 11 attacks will oversee the distribution of money donated to the victims of the deadly shooting at a suburban Denver movie theater, Gov. John Hickenlooper said Friday.

Twelve people were killed and 58 injured in the July 20 attack in Aurora during a midnight showing of “The Dark Knight Rises.”

Hickenlooper said Friday that Kenneth Feinberg won't be paid in his role as a special master overseeing the distribution of donations. Feinberg is taking the role “as a patriot in the purest way,” the governor said.

Feinberg said he would apply the lessons he's learned from overseeing compensation for victims of the 9/11 attacks, the Virginia Tech shooting and the BP oil spill. Colorado officials who have overseen the compensation fund for Aurora victims have been criticized for how long it's taken to distribute money.

“I think I'm doing what millions of Americans would do if asked,” Feinberg said. “I've had experience doing this, so I get the call. This is not rocket science. This is trying to take a limited pot of money, distribute it as soon as you can, as quickly as you can to eligible people in sore need of this money.”

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