ORANGEWOOD CEO GENE HOWARD JOINS DIOCESE REVIEW BOARD;
RETIRED POLICE CHIEF RON LOWENBERG IS NAMED CHAIRPERSON

April 5, 2004 – Gene Howard, chief executive officer of Orangewood Children’s Foundation, has been appointed to the Sexual Misconduct Oversight and Review Board of the Diocese of Orange according to Ron Lowenberg, Chairperson of the Board.

The Sexual Misconduct Oversight and Review Board of the Diocese of Orange is a confidential, consultative body that was established by Bishop Tod D. Brown in May, 2003. Its purpose is to assist the Bishop in dealing with allegations of sexual abuse of minors by priests or church personnel and to ensure that appropriate policies against sexual misconduct are followed by the clergy, religious, lay employees and volunteers of the Diocese of Orange.

Mr. Howard has been CEO of the foundation, which supports the Orangewood Children’s Home serving abused and neglected children in Orange County, since 1995. Previously, he was Director of Children’s Services for Orange County from 1985 to 1995. In that post, he was responsible for the administration of Child Protective Services, Orangewood Children’s Home, and Foster Care and Adoptions. Prior to coming to California, Mr. Howard served as the Arizona State Program Administrator responsible for children services programs throughout the state.
Mr. Lowenberg, who has 36 years of experience in law enforcement, was recently named Chairperson of the Board. He retired in 2002 as the Chief of the Huntington Beach Police Department and has served as president of the California Police Chiefs’ Association and the Orange County Police Chiefs and Sheriff’s Association. Presently he is Associate Dean and Director of the Criminal Justice Training Center, Golden West College.

Other members of the Board include:

• Barbara J. Phillips, immediate past Interim Chairperson of the Board, is a consultant for community and criminal justice agencies and was previously the Director of the Orange County California Victim/Witness Assistance Program from 1980 to 2001.
• Joseph Michael Cervantes, Ph.D., Associate Professor at the College of Human Development and Community Service, California State University in Fullerton and a psychologist who maintains a consulting practice with children, adolescents and families.
• William J. Collins, M.D., a practicing physician in Orange, board certified in internal medicine and gastroenterology, who is associated with St. Joseph Hospital where he served as Chief of Staff in 2002 and 2003.
• The Honorable Frank Domenichini (Ret.), a Superior Court of Orange County judge from 1971 through 1990, who also served as an Associate Justice Pro Tem on the Fourth District Court of Appeals, Division Two.
• Ed Mamer, who retired in 1995 from the office of the California Attorney General, where he had served as an attorney since 1960.
• Sister Kathleen Marie Pughe, CSJ, principal of Our Lady of Guadalupe Elementary School, La Habra, who has been an elementary school educator and administrator since 1953.

Reverend Enrique Jose Sera, Pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Santa Ana and a licensed marriage and family therapist with a Ph.D. in psychology, who has served as a chaplain in the U.S. Navy.

Serving as consultant to the Board is Darlyne R. Pettinicchio, Director of the Juvenile Court System, Orange County Probation Division and formerly supervisor of the Adult Sex Offender unit, who is a co-founder of the “Back in Control Parenting Program.”

The Sexual Misconduct Oversight and Review Board of the Diocese of Orange, succeeds the Sensitive Issues Committee that had been in place since the 1980’s. It was refined by Bishop Brown following the criteria for a review board that were contained in the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in June, 2002.

Specific duties of the Board include advising the Bishop in a number of areas: assessment of allegations of sexual abuse of minors; determination of suitability for ministry; reviewing diocesan policies for dealing with sexual abuse of minors; and offering advice on all aspects of these cases, whether retrospectively or prospectively. In addition, the Bishop may consult the Board with regard to allegations made by persons other than minors.

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