Mr. Larimer Co. assistant district attorney pleads guilty to sexual assault of intern in 1999

LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. — A former Larimer County deputy district attorney pleaded guilty to third-degree sexual assault in September as part of a plea deal in connection with a 1999 incident involving an intern.

Daniel Quinn was initially charged with sexual assault of a child by a person in a position of trust.

The survivor, who spoke to Denver7 anonymously, was in high school when she began her internship with the 8th Judicial District Attorney’s Office as a records clerk. She told Denver7 that she remembers the first time she met Quinn.

“He was in court and sent a message to the office that a file needed to be presented to him and I was asked to bring the file to him. I turned the file in and didn’t think anything of it,” she explained . “At some point after that he thanked me for it, which was a bit strange. I didn’t get much thanks for my job, and this is the first contact I remember.

The survivor said she received a lot of attention from Quinn afterward.

“He invited me to lunch. He asked me to play on his daughter’s soccer team, which he coached. He bought me presents. We went horseback riding in the mountains. “He helped me with an essay at school,” she remembers. “My 16-year-old and 17-year-old selves were thrilled, and because of the power difference, I didn’t really understand how inappropriate it was.”

Power and control are themes that often arise in similar cases.

“He raised me by using his power and control in a relationship that I could not legally consent to, and I worked in what should have been the safest office in Colorado,” she said.

According to Quinn’s affidavit, the Poudre School District became aware of “inappropriate emails” between Quinn and the high school student. The school district then alerted the public prosecutor.

The survivor was told she could no longer work in the DA’s office, while Quinn was allowed to resign.

“It was swept under the rug,” the survivor said. “It took me years to realize this, and a really good therapist to realize that what happened was wrong because it didn’t feel wrong. Nobody but me has gotten into trouble, and that’s why it’s confusing.”

Through counseling, the survivor said she dealt with layers of confusion, guilt and frustration. She decided to file a civil lawsuit against the county decades after the abuse.

The survivor was able to file the lawsuit under the Child Sexual Abuse Accountability Act, which went into effect in Colorado in 2021 and went into effect the following year. The law opened a three-year window during which victims of sexual abuse could file civil lawsuits alleging misconduct between 1960 and 2022.

In 2023, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that the Child Sexual Abuse Accountability Act was unconstitutional, finding that it violated the state’s ban on retroactive legislation.

“This law was passed several months before I filed a lawsuit against the county using it, and shortly after I settled my lawsuit with the county, the law was declared unconstitutional by the Colorado Supreme Court,” the survivor said. “It’s unfortunate because it allows people like me and people in my age group to have a voice at a time when it’s more acceptable to stand up to the perpetrator.”

According to the survivor, the civil lawsuit was settled for $300,000. In a statement, the Larimer County Board of Commissioners said its “only involvement in the settlement is fiscal in nature.”

Full statement:

Current 8th Circuit District Attorney Gordon McLaughlin said it was heartbreaking to see the details contained in the civil lawsuit. It was the first time he had heard of it.

“Everyone else who works in this office has dedicated their professional lives to supporting victims and seeking justice, and we know that.” [sexual assault is] “A crime that will stay with someone for the rest of their life,” McLaughlin said. “The trauma is not limited to this moment 25 years ago. I obviously can’t speak for the victim, but I would imagine. “That has a pretty big impact because I know that’s the case with most of the victims we work with.”

McLaughlin wanted to get to the bottom of the case and reported it to Fort Collins police.

“As this civil case progressed, it became clear to us that there were certainly credible allegations that warranted further investigation,” McLaughlin said. “I’m definitely incredibly sad and angry that the officials at the time didn’t do everything they could or should have done.”

After the Fort Collins Police Department’s investigation, it was decided to file criminal charges despite the statute of limitations. Quinn was originally charged with sexual assault of a child by a person in a position of trust.

“In one of these sexual assault allegations, there was a specific sentence modifier called a position of trust. This essentially means that the perpetrator of the crime took advantage of a certain power over the victim to commit that criminal behavior, and if there is a position of trust that modifies that crime, that exempts us from the statute of limitations and allows us to proceed. ” explained McLaughlin.

Because of Quinn’s ties to the 8th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, the case was assigned to prosecutors from the neighboring Weld County District Attorney’s Office.

Quinn agreed to plead guilty to third-degree sexual assault as part of a plea deal. Under the agreement, his prison sentence will be deferred, meaning his conviction will be overturned without prejudice if he completes four years of stipulated conditions. The provisions are similar to those that apply to probation for sex offenders.

If Quinn violates the terms of his deferred sentence, he will be found guilty of third-degree sexual assault and could be sentenced to six to 24 months in prison.

The survivor told Denver7 she has mixed feelings about the plea deal.

“I knew that it would be extremely difficult for me emotionally to go through a trial and that there was a risk that a jury would not have found him guilty. “That’s always a risk in a lawsuit,” she said. “For that reason, I agreed to a plea deal because I knew the outcome, but I think the plea deal that was reached is completely inadequate.” It’s another slap on the wrist… There is no prison, there there is no conviction for a crime. But ultimately there is no way that any settlement or conviction would bring justice, and that is the worst thing about our system.”

The survivor said justice is not the right word in this case. Instead, she believes responsibility is a more appropriate description of what happened.

“The idea that I’m automatically going to get closure through this process — that’s not how it works,” she said. “I just hope other adult survivors of child sexual abuse realize they are not alone. Unfortunately there are a lot of us.”

Denver7 reached out to Quinn’s attorney, who said she could not comment on a pending case. He will be formally sentenced during a hearing on November 18.