Justices side with LAPD in abuse case

SAN FRANCISCO -- The LAPD and the Boy Scouts of America may not be held liable for alleged sexual abuse of teenage boys by a former deputy police chief, the California Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday.

The state high court said the alleged victims had failed to show that the LAPD and the scouting group knew or should have known that retired Deputy Police Chief David Kalish had committed sexual misconduct with other minors before he was accused by the teenagers.

The decision clarified a law that permits victims of child abuse older than 26 to sue a molester’s employer or organization if they can show the employer “knew or had reason to know or was otherwise on notice” of any sexual misconduct by the employee or volunteer. Without such evidence, a victim older than 26 is barred from suing by legal time limits.

Thursday’s decision involved two men, now in their 40s, who said Kalish sexually abused them during the 1970s, when they participated in the department’s Explorer Scouts program.

Lawsuits by the alleged victims contended it was “commonly known” that Kalish traveled to Thailand, “a known haven for pedophiles,” that officers saw Kalish in Thailand with a young Thai boy, that both the Scouts and the police knew of past sexual abuse in the program, and that they knew or should have known that Kalish associated with a known pornographer and improperly fraternized with some of the boys.

But to prove liability, the victims needed to provide evidence that a reasonable person in the police or scouts would have inferred that Kalish had illegal sex with minors or believed it was “highly probable,” given the circumstances, the court said.

“Knowledge or notice of misconduct by Kalish that created a risk of sexual exploitation is not enough,” Justice Carlos R. Moreno wrote for the court.

Kalish, who retired in 2004, has denied the allegations. He was suspended in 2003 while police conducted a five-month investigation into the sexual abuse claims.

L.A. prosecutors said there was sufficient evidence to support a prosecution, but legal deadlines had expired. At the time of his retirement, Kalish was the highest-ranking openly gay member of the LAPD.

The alleged victims, referred to as John Doe and John Doe 2, said Kalish had abused them when they were scouts at the LAPD’s Devonshire division.

Doe 2 said the department and scouting group knew or should have known about prior misconduct in the program and should have supervised Kalish more closely.

Attorneys for the alleged victims said they also sued Kalish, and that lawsuit will go forward. The lawyers praised the court’s interpretation of the law, while expressing disappointment about its application in their cases.

Devin M. Storey, one of the plaintiffs’ lawyers, said the ruling created a flexible standard that would require courts to decide on a case-by-case basis whether such lawsuits could proceed.

“What they do make clear,” said Irwin M. Zalkin, who also represented the alleged victims, “is that plaintiffs aren’t put in a position of having to demonstrate actual prior knowledge of sexual abuse by a perpetrator.”

maura.dolan@latimes.com