Bishop Testifies in Suit Over Principal’s Firing

The highest-ranking official of the Diocese of Orange was the first witness called to testify Wednesday as a civil trial began into allegations that a former principal was fired two years ago for complaining about unsafe conditions at a Catholic school in Placentia.

In his testimony, Bishop Norman F. McFarland denied the charges, saying he had placed Marion Patzem, the former principal of St. Joseph School, on administrative leave after a four-member committee found that she was a “divisive” influence at the school.

In a lawsuit filed last year, Patzem said she was dismissed in May, 1992, after she repeatedly complained about toxic fumes leaking from fluorescent light fixtures in a third-grade classroom. The substance was later found to be a carcinogen commonly known as PCBs.

Problems began when a teacher and students in the classroom noticed flickering lights and complained of stomach pains, respiratory problems and recurring rashes on their forearms, necks, torsos and legs.

Patzem alleged in her lawsuit that the school’s pastor, Father John Ruhl, poked her in the chest for making repeated complaints. She was later fired without notice and escorted from the school’s grounds by Placentia police in front of her students, the suit contends. She is seeking unspecified damages.

In his termination letter, McFarland told Patzem--nominated by school officials in 1991 for a national Catholic school principal of the year award--that she was being dismissed because “you chose not to cooperate in our effort to look into the general unrest in St. Joseph Parish.”

Patzem, who served as principal for seven years, was dismissed amid acrimonious debate within the parish.