Attorneys lambaste how allegations were made

Editor's note: On "Sunday Morning with Liz Bishop," seen Feb. 8 on WRGB, channel 6, three prominent attorneys from the Capital District discussed the allegations against Bishop Hubbard and how they became public. These excerpts from the program, seen at 8:30 a.m., are reprinted with permission of WRGB:

Liz Bishop: Joining us...are attorneys Steven Coffey, Don Boyajian and...E. Stewart Jones....We're going to start with this situation with the Bishop and with this Andrew Zalay, who has come forward. He says [he is] representing his dead brother, who committed suicide. It's really important, in a spirit of full disclosure, to ask, first of all, if any of you have any connection to any of the participants or a pre-disposition based on some personal or professional knowledge.

Steve Coffey: Actually, I have cases against the Albany Diocese right now with people who claim to have been sexually abused.

Donald Boyajian: Our law firm has represented a number of the clergy in connection with the litigation which was just decided in Schenectady County.

E. Stewart Jones: I'm a Roman Catholic and a strong supporter of the Bishop, but, otherwise, I don't have any connection to any side....

Liz Bishop: What [is] your instant reaction to a Bishop of the Diocese of the size of Albany, representing about 400,000 Catholics, finding himself in this situation....While this investigation is going on, should he consider stepping aside?

E. Stewart Jones: In my view, absolutely not, because there's no substance to the charges and no proof of anything. He's categorically, unequivocally, forcefully denied the charge. We should accept that. He should be allowed to carry on his duties and responsibilities as Bishop.

Steve Coffey: A fundamental right that every person has in this society is to be able to defend himself. If you take these outrageous charges and throw them on TV, and then you lay it out and say, "Well, you know, maybe you ought to step aside because you're guilty," what are you guilty of? You're guilty of some typewritten note that isn't signed apparently, and a handwritten note that maybe has some vague reference to the Bishop. And all of a sudden, 25 years later,...he has to publicly answer charges....

Liz Bishop: If Andrew Zalay came to you with his brother's charred notebook and that typewritten suicide note -- apparent suicide note -- what would you do?...

E. Stewart Jones: I'd throw him out of the office. A 25-year-old claim! He's got nothing but a piece of paper from a man who is sufficiently delusional to have torched himself to death. It's preposterous. It never should have seen the light of a lawyer's office, much less the light of a public platform....

Donald Boyajian: When someone tells you that the claim resulted from alleged actions 25 years earlier, there's no legal basis to pursue either a criminal claim or a civil claim.

Steve Coffey: I tell you what I would not do. I would not stand out at a press conference; I would not have this person read something, publicly accusing an individual of the most heinous sexual act and then say to the public, as an attorney, "Well, you make the decision." I think that's wrong; I think it's reprehensible; I think it's outrageous. I don't know one attorney that I respect who would've stood there as part of that press conference and participated in nothing but a sham....

E. Stewart Jones: [John Aretakis] had a responsibility as a lawyer not to allow this to become public without proof. And he did [go public] because he has an agenda. The agenda is directed to the Catholic Church and the Bishop, and it's a vendetta. It's character assassination at the worst level, and Aretakis bears responsibility for allowing this to develop....

Liz Bishop: Would any of you consider taking this case if, in fact, you had perhaps a little more evidence than a letter from the grave?...

Steve Coffey: If you had sufficient evidence that you could tie together, then you could file a claim with the Diocese. The fact is, though, that you have no evidence here....

E. Stewart Jones: The accusation becomes reality; and then it puts the person against whom the accusation is made in a position of having to defend something which he shouldn't have to defend....

Liz Bishop: What can [the Bishop] do to reassure people?...

Steve Coffey: As a public figure, [the Bishop has] now been publicly indicted for this charge, and he's done everything he can do and said, "Listen, I'll do whatever you want. You want a polygraph? I'll take a polygraph....If you want someone independent to review it, I'll do whatever you want." Because he has these charges laid against him and thrown out there, and Aretakis and the individual's brother stand there and say, "Well, we just wanted to let the public know." They could have investigated this privately....To throw this out in the public and have us discuss this is awful for Howard Hubbard or any individual.

Liz Bishop: What does it do to somebody placed in a situation where they are charged with something that is eventually proven to be false? How do they recoup their good name, or can they ever?

E. Stewart Jones: There's a terrible harm in false accusations because people remember the accusation. They don't remember that it was never proven; they don't remember that you were acquitted. You never fully recover from false accusations when they are as sensational as this and where they are given such wide play. That's why Aretakis never should have had a platform in the first instance. He should not have been allowed to go public with this. There should have been a requirement that this document be proven, that there should be some substance to the charge. Once the accusation is made, you can't take it away. It doesn't evaporate. It's there as a stain for life, even though it's absolutely an outrage, preposterous and absolutely unprovable....

Steve Coffey: There is a famous statement. I think it was Secretary of Labor Ray Donovan,...who was acquitted of a baseless charge....The classic line when he walked out [of the courtroom was],..."Where do I go now to get back my own good name?"...I'd like to hear how [Aretakis] possibly justifies doing what he did here. He and the individual go forward with a press conference with a public figure in a very sensitive area, and they throw this out. And they basically say, "We think it's true; we don't even know for sure if it's true, but we suspect it's true; and there it is, and now you handle the rest of it." And now you have a man who's a Bishop -- it could be anybody -- and you have these terrible, slanderous remarks made about him,...and now he has to defend this. And a large segment of our community's going to say, "You know, he probably did something here. Why would this person say this?" It's outrageous once you do this, because you can't defend it....

Liz Bishop: In the course of all of this, we have never seen a lawyer at the side of the Bishop. Does that surprise you? Would you think he should have an attorney with him as he has answered these charges?

E. Stewart Jones: Bishop Hubbard can stand on his own. He is a very articulate, forceful speaker; and I think in this situation, he should have been there by himself, addressing this as forcefully and unequivocally and categorically as he did. He proclaimed his innocence, with an incredibly believable, powerful performance, and he didn't need anybody's help in doing that....

Donald Boyajian: I don't know what else he could have said. He was very clear and unequivocal. He categorically denied every ounce of truth in any of these allegations. I thought he was very articulate and very clear in his denials.

Liz Bishop: Is [the Bishop] in a position to press charges? Is there anything that he can do? Legally, how does this work now?

E. Stewart Jones: Certainly, he could, but the Bishop always turns the other cheek. He's a compassionate, forgiving man. He could bring a civil action here if he chose to. He would never do that, in my judgment. His life is a life of compassion and forgiveness and caring and concern. He expressed deep grief for the family who'd lost that boy to suicide 25 years ago. That's the kind of human being he is. He's not going to seize this opportunity to file a civil lawsuit.

(2/12/04) [[In-content Ad]]