In a major concession, state Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald said Thursday that she is willing to rework controversial child sexual abuse legislation in an attempt to address a chief concern of Catholic officials who accuse her of targeting the church.
Fitz-Gerald said if all goes according to plan, two bills in the legislature would put public and private entities on the same footing when it comes to being vulnerable to lawsuits involving sexual abuse claims against their employees and representatives.
Most notably, the Jefferson County Democrat said her Senate Bill 143 – the main target of the church’s ire – would open a two-year window for lawsuits against both public and private entities regardless of how long ago the alleged abuse took place.
“I’m doing everything I can to meet every standard they’ve asked for,” Fitz-Gerald said. “What I find baffling is why they continue to ratchet up their publicity on a bill that as it moves through the process is trying to meet their demands.”
The move did not immediately convince Catholic Church officials, who have lingering questions about whether the playing field is truly level – as well as concerns about fading memories, claims against perpetrators long dead and a possible financial blow to church programs that benefit the community.
“As far as whether (Fitz-Gerald) is doing the right thing and making progress, we’ll wait and see,” said Tim Dore, executive director of the Colorado Catholic Conference, the church’s public-policy arm. “As it stands right now, her bill is prejudicial, it’s targeting the church.”
The centerpiece of the church’s opposition: the argument that children are more vulnerable to sex abuse in public schools, yet governmental immunity laws make it extremely difficult to sue school districts.
To meet that concern, a House bill sponsored by Rep. Gwyn Green, D-Golden, was amended to create the same standards for suing both private and public bodies. Entities are vulnerable if they knowingly expose kids to a known molester and cover it up.
Fitz-Gerald and Green say that if Green’s bill passes the Senate with that wider scope, Fitz-Gerald’s two-year lawsuit window will apply to both public and private bodies because Green’s bill lifts governmental immunity for schools that protect pedophiles.
Fitz-Gerald said she doesn’t know whether her bill or Green’s needs to reworked to accomplish that goal, but that she is amenable to such changes.
She said she hasn’t had a change of heart – she still believes schools can be sued under federal law and that safeguards protect public school kids now.
But given the concerns raised by the church, “I don’t think it hurts to be inclusive,” she said.
Dore countered that Green’s intent is “not about equality – it’s about hitting the church right between the eyes.” He pointed to Green’s comments in a hearing about abuse perpetrated by a “representative of God.”
Her legislative intent could become an issue if the bill becomes law and is challenged in court.
Green said it doesn’t matter to her where abuse takes place – she wants the appropriate institution held accountable.
Jana Caldwell, spokeswoman for the Colorado Association of School Executives, said her group has yet to take a position on the bills but faces a quandary.
“Our responsibility is to protect children – that’s first and foremost,” she said. “But at the same time, we have the responsibility to the taxpayers for responsible use of public funds.”
The battle has evolved into perhaps the most contentious and personal of the legislative session, with letters read from pulpits calling for Catholics to take action, victims begging for justice, a website launched to oppose Fitz-Gerald’s “bad” bill and escalating rhetoric.
Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput has called the legislation hostile to Catholics. In an interview with the Catholic publication Our Sunday Visitor, he scolded his brother bishops for not fighting back hard enough.
David Clohessy of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests on Thursday assailed Chaput’s comments as “far more Nixonian than Christ-like” and “more like a desperate monarch than a spiritual leader.”
