Former Northern Colorado deputy DA sexually assaulted underage intern, victim shares story

Former Larimer County Chief Deputy District Attorney Dan Quinn will have to register as a sex offender after a former intern, who was underage at the time, came forward and reported their sexual relationship. For the first time, the victim in the case shared her story with CBS News Colorado's Dillon Thomas who first reported the case.

Thomas and CBS News Colorado were the only journalists in the courtroom last month as Quinn pleaded guilty to sexual assault in the third degree, stemming from his actions in the late 1990s and early 2000s. 

The victim in the case, now a local lawyer, first started her pursuit of her dream career while still in high school with Poudre School District. 

CBS News Colorado has agreed to not publicize the woman's identity because she was a child at the time of many of the sexual assaults. 

"I knew from a young age I wanted to be an attorney," the victim said.

So, she set out to find an internship that would help her get her foot in the door of the profession. She was able to obtain an internship through PSD and the Larimer County courts system. It allowed her to get some experience, establish connections, and also obtain course credit. 

She was hired in the late 1990s at just 16 years old. 

"My role was file work, I was a grunt," the victim said. "It was like a dream come true, it was as close as I could get to being an attorney at 16 or 17."

However, she said her life changed when she encountered them-chief deputy district attorney Dan Quinn. 

She was asked to deliver him files for a court case he was working on. 

"He gave me a thank you note and left a memento on my desk for taking a file to him," the victim said. "In retrospect, it is odd. But, as a 16-year-old I was thrilled."

In videos obtained by CBS News Colorado, Quinn told Fort Collins Police he recalled connecting with the victim especially after her noticed her smile. She says she later returned to her desk to find a letter from Quinn. 

"What started off as a thank you note for taking a file to him escalated to buying me lunches, giving me other gifts, wanting to give me rides in the mountains. That is when I started feeling uncomfortable with what was going on," the victim said.

The victim said she reported Quinn's conduct at the time to at least one staff member within the office. 

"How did they address that?" Thomas asked. 

"That attorney spoke directly with Mr. Quinn and asked him to stop having contact with me. That attorney also reported Mr. Quinn's contact to the office administrator," the victim said.

However, she says the conduct and contact did not stop even after Quinn was confronted by his peers. 

The contact became sexual, with police reporting that Quinn admitted to touching the victim over her clothes before that evolved into sexual encounters. 

"I didn't understand when I was 16 or 17 how inappropriate it was. So, for a while I welcomed the affection," the victim said.

"You might've welcomed that because of who he was and the career you wanted to get into?" Thomas asked. 

"That is absolutely right. Initially, I welcomed the affection because he was an attorney, which I aspired to be," the victim said. "He had power within the office. He was the chief deputy district attorney."

The sexual encounters took place in the office staircases, at the courthouse, and in private settings as well. The abuse continued for years, even after the victim then became a legal adult. 

Eventually, more staff began to notice the duo's connection and brought it to the attention of then-district attorney Stu Vanmeveren. 

Vanmeveren then reportedly allowed Quinn to resign from his position, not reporting the crimes to the police.

The victim said she believes Quinn did not have any excuse at the time to justify his actions with an intern who was underage for most of the encounters. 

"In your opinion, is there no excuse for him to have not known that what he was doing was not only wrong but illegal?" Thomas asked. 

"There is no excuse for him or anyone in that district attorney's office. They were prosecuting people that were violating the same statute," the victim said.

Quinn went on to practice law for decades following the sexual assaults. 

The victim reported the crimes in 2023 after Colorado lawmakers briefly created a law that eliminated the statute of limitations for victims of child sexual abuse by people in positions of power. The law has since been ruled unconstitutional. 

However, police had already begun their investigation and the legal process resulted in a plea agreement with Quinn.  

As part of the plea agreement, which Quinn accepted, Quinn pleaded guilty to sexual assault in the third degree and also agreed to register as a sex offender. 

I'm a civil lawsuit with the county, Larimer County's board of commissioners agreed to pay the victim $300,000 because of the county's former staff failing to report Quinn to police. 

Vanmeveren's name has also been stripped from part of the Larimer County Court House that was named after him because of his failure to report. 

Quinn's official sentencing was initially set for Oct. 1. However, the sentencing was delayed to mid-November.

"Would you say, decades later, you are still hurt by what happened?" Thomas asked. 

"Absolutely. There is a part of me that is still 16 or 17 years old and doesn't fully understand how bad Mr. Quinn's conduct was," the victim said. "That is something I will live with the rest of my life."