Lawsuit Accuses Priest of Misconduct, Archdiocese Disputes Claims

By Tim Ryan
9 News
July 4, 2013

http://www.9news.com/news/local/article/343561/222/Lawsuit-accuses-priest-of-misconduct-archdiocese-disputes-claims

The Archdiocese of Denver disputes allegations in a pending lawsuit that a priest engaged in improper behavior in 2011.

A news release from the archdiocese says Rev. Jose Saenz has agreed to "step away from parish ministry until further notice" due to the allegations, which the news release doesn't describe in detail.

At the time of the alleged improper behavior Rev. Saenz was a priest at St. Mary of the Crown Mission in Carbondale. He then spent a year at Blessed Sacrament parish in Denver before he transferred in June to St. Therese parish in Aurora.

The Archdiocese says the allegations don't involve any underage children, and says it disputes the lawsuit's allegations about an incident that occurred two years ago.

9Wants to Know located a record of a court filing in Denver District Court entitled: "Jane Doe No 34 vs. Archdiocese Of Denver." The lawsuit was filed on June 28.

The Archdiocese says it and Father Saenz cooperated fully with an investigation by authorities, who didn't charge him with a crime.

The group Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests issued a statement calling on Denver Archbishop Samuel Aquila to personally visit all the parishes where Rev. Saenz worked to encourage others to come forward if they have knowledge about the 2011 incident.

9NEWS spoke to local attorney Jon Fee, who is acting as local counsel for the unidentified plaintiff in the lawsuit, but he referred all questions to a firm called Herman Law in Florida, which specializes in representing victims of sexual abuse.