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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Virginia officials are working to compensate victims' families for last year's Virginia Tech shooting spree, which left almost 50 students and staff members dead or wounded, Gov. Tim Kaine told a radio station Tuesday.
Families of some Virginia Tech victims could file lawsuits if a settlement isn't reached, an attorney says.
The state, which began meeting with families soon after the April 16, 2007, shootings, wants to "find a way to avoid litigation," the governor told Washington radio station WTOP.
Kaine, who appeared on the station's "Ask the Governor" show, said officials are considering options that go beyond mere compensation. He declined to elaborate because, he said, the settlement discussions are confidential until the families make a final decision.
"Creatively, we're looking at a resolution that would make family members feel that we were doing the right thing going forward," Kaine said.
He added, "Productive discussions are ongoing, but there is no settlement yet to announce."
Kaine said several factors were under consideration in the settlement talks, including the sovereign immunity doctrine, which places limits -- and in some case, prohibitions -- on suing governments.
Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and then himself during the shooting spree on the Blacksburg campus. Seventeen people also were wounded in the shooting rampage, one of the deadliest in U.S. history.
Unnamed relatives of some victims have said there have been offers -- including sums up to $100,000 -- in exchange for agreeing not to sue the state or university.
One family member told The Associated Press the deal could include medical and counseling expenses for families as well as an opportunity for relatives to grill the governor and university officials about the shootings. The family member asked to remain anonymous because those involved in the talks were asked not to discuss any agreement, the AP reported.
In September, family members of at least seven victims retained the Washington-based law firm Bode & Grenier, which specializes in high-profile wrongful-death lawsuits, attorney Peter Grenier told CNN at the time.
The family members represented victims Matthew Gwaltney, Caitlin Hammaren, Juan Ortiz, Reema Samaha, Nicole White, Brian Bluhm and Michael Pohle.
Grenier said then that the victims would not file a class-action suit. Rather, he said, family members would pursue negligence-based, wrongful-death claims on behalf of each victim.
The lawsuit would target the state of Virginia. Virginia Tech is a public institution. The families have about three weeks -- a year from the date of the shooting -- to file claims, Grenier said.
An August 2007 report by an independent panel concluded that more timely and more specific information from university officials might have saved lives.
The university was criticized for not giving students and staff proper warning after two students were found dead in a dormitory the morning of the killings.
The campus was not locked down after the discovery of the dead student and resident adviser. Police said they initially believed those two were victims of a romantic dispute, but it later was confirmed they were Cho's first victims.
The bodies were found at 7 a.m. It was almost 9:30 a.m. before authorities sent an e-mail to students and staff notifying them of those shootings and warning them to be cautious.
About 9:50 a.m., 23-year-old Cho began shooting people in a campus building housing classrooms.
While criticizing the university response, the panel -- which included former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge -- said quicker action by school officials may not have made a difference.
"There does not seem to be a plausible scenario of university response to the double homicide that could have prevented a tragedy of considerable magnitude on April 16," said the report, authored by an eight-member panel that Kaine commissioned.
The report also noted that campus and state agencies may have taken a different approach to Cho if his middle and high schools records had followed him to Virginia Tech. Problems with Cho reportedly began to surface well before the April 16 shootings.
The records detailed Cho's mental health issues, including a tendency to react to depression with violence. E-mail to a friend
Copyright 2008 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
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