US EditionWashington law mandating clergy report child abuse to be investigated by Trump’s Justice Department
- On May 2, 2025, Washington state passed Senate Bill 5375, which requires religious leaders to disclose any suspected cases of child abuse, including details learned during confession, with the law set to take effect on July 27.
- This legislation followed years of debate aimed at closing reporting loopholes to better protect children and added clergy to the state's mandatory reporters list.
- Catholic leaders warn reporting abuse learned during confession violates canon law, threatens excommunication, and they have vowed to oppose the law despite potential legal consequences.
- The federal Department of Justice launched a civil rights investigation calling the law 'anti-Catholic' and asserting it violates the First Amendment’s free exercise clause.
- The conflict highlights a tense balance between religious freedom and child protection, with possible legal and policy implications for similar laws in other states.
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54 Articles
The Columbian
BishopAccountability.org - Documenting the Catholic Sexual Abuse and Financial Crisis - Data on bishSpokane and Seattle bishops say they won’t comply with new mandatory reporting for child abuse if information obtained in confessions
SPOKANE — The Catholic bishops in Spokane and Seattle have told parishioners they will not fully comply with a new Washington law that requires clergy to report sexual abuse to police, similar to teachers, police officers and other professionals. Read more...
Washington State Declares War on Religion, Especially Catholics
Gov. Bob Ferguson ignored pleas from Catholic priests and signed a new law stripping members of the clergy of their ability to hear confessions as “privileged communication.” I may not be a lawyer, but that clearly violates the 1st Amendment. The state legislature passed SB 5375, targeting the confessional and requiring priests and ministers to report any […] The post Washington State Declares War on Religion, Especially Catholics appeared first…
Civil rights probe launched over state abuse reporting law’s lack of Catholic confession protections
WASHINGTON (OSV News) -- The Justice Department said May 5 it opened a civil rights investigation into the development and passage of legislation in Washington state that requires clergy to report child abuse or neglect but provides no exceptions for clergy-penitent privilege. Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson on May 2 signed into law Senate Bill 5375,
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