Latest news with #SenateBill5375
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump-backed clergy nets win over Washington state child abuse law — for now
Members of the Roman Catholic clergy in Washington, backed by the Trump administration, won a victory in court last Friday as they seek to dismantle a controversial aspect of a state law meant to curb child sex abuse. U.S. District Judge David Estudillo granted the plaintiffs' request for a preliminary injunction on Friday, placing a hold on Senate Bill 5375, a law that requires faith leaders to report instances of child abuse relayed to them, including Catholic priests who hear such admissions during confessions. The law was set to go into effect on July 27. The Trump administration last month joined the legal fight to overturn the law, which it describes as "anti-Catholic," suing Washington state and Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson. The governor, who is Catholic, has defended the law and said he's "disappointed" in the Church for seeking to block it. A hearing in the Trump administration's request for a separate preliminary injunction is set for this week, the Washington State Standard reported. Proponents of the law say it doesn't single out Catholics, given that the mandatory reporting requirement includes ministers, priests, rabbis, imams, elders or a 'spiritual leader of any church, religious denomination, religious body, spiritual community or sect,' as well as school employees and health care workers. But Estudillo, a Biden appointee, said the law's requirement regarding confessionals infringes upon priests' First Amendment rights. He noted that roughly 25 other states have carved out exceptions for the confessional in their mandatory reporting laws and called Washington's exemptions for other professions 'likely fatal to SB 5375.' To me, there's scant evidence that the law — which was created in response to abuse allegations among Jehovah's Witnesses — is anti-Catholic, and ample evidence that the law is simply anti-sex abuse. And the Trump administration's attempt to undercut it fit a disturbing pattern of undermining efforts to combat sex abuse. This article was originally published on
American Military News
25-06-2025
- Politics
- American Military News
Trump admin sues Washington over 'anti-Catholic' law
President Donald Trump's Justice Department announced on Monday that it was taking legal action and filing a lawsuit against a new law in Washington State, claiming that it violates the First Amendment by forcing Catholic priests to break the 'confidentiality seal of Confession' by reporting certain confessions to government officials. In a Monday press release, the Justice Department confirmed that it had filed legal action against Washington state over a new state law, known as Senate Bill 5375. The Justice Department claimed that the state's new law 'violates the free exercise of religion for all Catholics, and requires Catholic priests to violate the confidentiality seal of Confession.' According to The Post Millennial, Washington's Senate Bill 5375, which was signed into law by Gov. Bob Ferguson (D-Wash.), requires Catholic priests to report confessions to government authorities if the confessions involve cases of suspected child neglect or abuse. READ MORE: FBI's targeting of Catholics, pro-lifers exposed by House GOP The Justice Department argued on Monday that Senate Bill 5375 forces Catholic priests to 'violate their vows to uphold the confidentiality seal that accompanies the sacred rite of Confession, subjecting them to immediate excommunication from the Catholic Church.' In Monday's press release, the Justice Department said its lawsuit shows that the Democrat-run state's new law violates the First Amendment's Free Exercise of Religion Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause by targeting Catholic priests and members of Catholic churches while establishing a double standard of confidentiality for religious and secular institutions. Harmeet K. Dhillon, assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, said, 'Laws that explicitly target religious practices such as the Sacrament of Confession in the Catholic Church have no place in our society.' 'Senate Bill 5375 unconstitutionally forces Catholic priests in Washington to choose between their obligations to the Catholic Church and their penitents or face criminal consequences, while treating the priest-penitent privilege differently than other well-settled privileges,' Dhillon added. 'The Justice Department will not sit idly by when States mount attacks on the free exercise of religion.'
UPI
24-06-2025
- Politics
- UPI
DOJ sues Wash. over law mandating priests to report child abuse
June 23 (UPI) -- The Trump administration filed a lawsuit Monday in support of a challenge to a new Washington State law mandating clergy to report child abuse, describing the rule as "anti-Catholic" and a violation of the Constitution. Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, a Catholic, signed Senate Bill 5375 into law early last month. The new law, which goes into effect July 27, adds clergy members -- including priests, ministers, rabbi and imam, among others -- to the list of people required to report child abuse or neglect to the state or law enforcement under threat of being charged with a gross misdemeanor offense. The law has received pushback from local Catholics, who have characterized it as forcing them to break the sacred seal of confession in order to avoid prison. In the Justice Department's lawsuit, federal prosecutors argue the new law puts Catholic priests at odds with the core tenets and beliefs of their religion and violates their First Amendment right to the freedom of religion "by forcing them to violate the sanctity and confidentiality of confessional communications. "No other mandatory reporter is required to forego his or her fundamental rights under the Constitution in this manner," the lawsuit states, while adding that the law will have a "chilling effect" on thousands of Catholic priests and parishioners who may be uncertain about whether adhering to the sacrament of penance will open them to criminal penalties, child welfare investigations, civil liability or excommunication. "Laws that explicitly target religious practices such as the Sacrament of Confession in the Catholic Church have no place in our society," Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights division said in a statement. "Senate Bill 5375 unconstitutionally forces Catholic priests in Washington to choose between their obligations to the Catholic Church and their penitents or face criminal consequences, while treating the priest-penitent privilege differently than other well-settled privileges." The lawsuit is an intervention in a complaint filed early this month by Washington State Catholic bishops, who argue it discriminates against them as attorneys are exempt from inclusion as mandatory reporters. "Washington State has no business intruding into the confessional -- particularly when they give a free pass to lawyers who have legally protected confidential relationships with clients," Mark Rienzi, president and CEO of Becket, a non-profit public interest religious liberty group that is representing the bishops, said in a statement. "Punishing priests for following the Catholic Church's millennia-old faith traditions isn't just wrong, it's unconstitutional." The governor told KUOW in a statement that he wasn't surprised by the Department of Justice's intervention. "It's disappointing, but not surprising, to see the DOJ seek to shield and protect child abusers."
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Catholic bishops sue Washington state over law requiring clergy to report child abuse
Catholic leaders in Washington have sued the state over a new law requiring clergy to report suspected child abuse, including details potentially revealed during confession. The lawsuit, filed last week on behalf of the bishops, alleges Senate Bill 5375, which was signed into law on May 2, violates the First Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The law 'puts Roman Catholic priests to an impossible choice: violate 2,000 years of Church teaching and incur automatic excommunication, or refuse to comply with Washington law and be subject to imprisonment, fine, and civil liability,' the lawsuit states. The law's text doesn't target Catholics specifically. In fact, it upholds the mandatory reporting requirement for ministers, priests, rabbis, imams, elders or a 'spiritual leader of any church, religious denomination, religious body, spiritual community or sect," adding to a list that includes school employees and health care workers. The bill's sponsor, Democratic state Sen. Noel Frame, said she was motivated to create this bill following reports that Jehovah's Witnesses covered up child sexual abuse for years. But the Catholic bishops, of a denomination that has also been roiled over several years by child sex abuse scandals, argue in their filing that the law could be used to force them to violate their oaths if they're forced to relay child abuse information provided during confessions. The New York Times offered some helpful context here: Clergy are considered mandated reporters in a majority of states, meaning they are legally obligated to report to authorities if they suspect a child is being abused. In most states, however, the state reserves protections for the clergy-penitent relationship. In seven states, including New Hampshire and West Virginia, there is no such exception. (In Tennessee, the privilege is denied only in cases of child sexual abuse.) It's not clear that any priests have been prosecuted or penalized in those states over failing to report abuse that they learned about during a confession. In other words, the Washington state law isn't wholly unprecedented, even if it's controversial to some Catholics. And one might think the Trump administration, which has made a show of cracking down on purported child abuse, might support legislation such as this, which appears equipped to help Washington do so as well. But the Justice Department last month launched an investigation into the law, framing it as 'anti-Catholic.' In a statement responding to the lawsuit, Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, who is Catholic, 'I'm disappointed my Church is filing a federal lawsuit to protect individuals who abuse kids." Ferguson has stated previously that Catholic Bishops potentially having to reveal child abuse claims they hear during confession didn't give him pause. 'I'm very familiar with it," he said. "Been to confession, myself. I felt this was important legislation for protecting kids. This article was originally published on
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Catholic bishops sue Washington over law requiring priests to break confessional seal
A group of Roman Catholic bishops and priests filed a federal lawsuit Thursday challenging a new Washington law that requires clergy to report suspected child abuse or neglect, even when the information is received in confession. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Tacoma, argues that the law—set to take effect July 27—violates constitutional rights to religious freedom by forcing priests to choose between adhering to the centuries-old doctrine of confessional secrecy or facing criminal charges. The plaintiffs include Seattle Archbishop Paul D. Etienne, Yakima Bishop Joseph J. Tyson, Spokane Bishop Thomas A. Daly, and eight priests from dioceses across the state. They are suing Gov. Bob Ferguson, Attorney General Nick Brown, and all 39 of Washington's county prosecutors in their official capacities. At the center of the legal battle is Senate Bill 5375, signed by Ferguson on May 2. The bill expands the list of mandatory reporters of child abuse under state law to include clergy, without exceptions for information received in the confessional. Violations carry a penalty of up to 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine. The plaintiffs claim the law 'puts Roman Catholic priests to an impossible choice: violate 2,000 years of Church teaching and incur automatic excommunication or refuse to comply with Washington law and be subject to imprisonment, fine, and civil liability.' Under canon law, any priest who discloses information received during confession is automatically excommunicated. The plaintiffs say this punishment cannot be lifted by anyone except the pope and argue the new law specifically targets Catholic doctrine by removing privileges for clergy that still exist for other professionals like attorneys, union representatives, and domestic violence advocates. Supporters of the law, including lawmakers who pushed the bill through the legislature, have framed it as a child protection measure, saying it is meant to ensure clergy cannot shield abusers behind religious confidentiality. The complaint alleges the law violates the Free Exercise and Establishment Clauses of the First Amendment and similar protections under the Washington Constitution. The bishops also argue that their dioceses already maintain policies requiring priests to report suspected abuse, except when learned in confession. They say they support broader mandatory reporting laws—so long as they respect the sacramental seal. The plaintiffs are asking the court to block the law's implementation and declare it unconstitutional.
