Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark issued a short statement Thursday regarding criminal complaints filed against Ward 5 Councillor Randy Donauer by former students at a Saskatoon Christian school.
A number of former students of Legacy Christian Academy have come forward in recent weeks with serious allegations of abuse. The students have launched a class-action lawsuit, and made a number of criminal complaints to police.
In his statement, Clark acknowledged that serious allegations have been made against “a colleague,” but did not refer to Donauer by name.
The mayor said it took a lot of courage for the former students to come forward with their stories.
“As a community, we need to understand the impact of these experiences while also acknowledging that there are civil court and criminal investigative processes underway,” Clark said.
While those processes are ongoing, Clark said the City Council Code of Conduct and an integrity commissioner will independently handle issues of concern regarding members of council.
Clark said he will also ask for a report from administration on what governance options are available to council at this point, and added that the integrity and public confidence in city governance are very important to him.
In an emailed statement earlier this week, Donauer denied any wrongdoing and said he would defend himself against what he called “unsubstantiated” allegations.