Archdiocese of Denver Statement on Fr. Saenz

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver
July 3, 2013

http://www.archden.org/index.cfm/ID/10230

The Archdiocese of Denver has received notice of a pending lawsuit regarding allegations of misconduct on the part of Fr. Jose Saenz. There is no allegation of any misconduct with a child or minor. The Archdiocese takes this and all allegations of misconduct seriously.

The allegation concerns an incident that took place two years ago. Since that time, the Archdiocese and Fr. Saenz have cooperated fully with legal authorities in the matter. Father Saenz was not charged with any crime by the authorities who fully investigated the matter. The Archdiocese disputes the plaintiff’s allegations.

The Archdiocese is unable to comment on the specifics of any legal matter. In this case, we have received notification of a pending lawsuit, but have not yet been served with the lawsuit.

The Archdiocese has no reason to believe that Fr. Saenz is a threat to anyone. Fr. Saenz has never been accused of any other acts of misconduct. However, in order to allow Fr. Saenz to focus on these issues, and to limit distractions in the parish, the Archdiocese has requested that Fr. Saenz step away from parish ministry until further notice, and he has agreed to do so.