A Washington state law requiring Catholic priests to break the seal of confession to report child abuse has been temporarily blocked by U.S. District Chief Judge David G. Estudillo. The ruling, delivered in Tacoma on Friday, prevents the enforcement of Senate Bill 5375—a law signed by Governor Bob Ferguson in May and set to take effect on July 27.
Judge Estudillo's 25-page order indicates that the legislation likely infringes upon the First Amendment's free exercise of religion clause. The law would have subjected clergy members to up to 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine for failing to report abuse, without any exemption for sacramental confession. Estudillo suggested that Washington could protect children through less restrictive means by adding clergy to the list of mandatory reporters but allowing an exception for confessions.
The Catholic Church holds confession as one of its most inviolable practices, with priests bound by canon law to keep confessions confidential, facing excommunication if they fail to do so. This case highlights the tension between the state's interest in protecting children and the constitutional protections of religious practices.
Mark Rienzi, president and CEO of Becket, the legal group representing the Archdiocese of Seattle, affirmed the ruling's significance, stating that it prevents government officials from intervening in the confessional, thereby supporting the broader principle of religious freedom. Kelsey Reinhardt, President of CatholicVote, praised the decision as a counter to increasing anti-Catholic sentiment, emphasizing that no American should be penalized for practicing their faith.
The challenge to the law was initiated on May 29 by Archbishop Paul D. Etienne and other religious leaders, with legal representation from Becket, the First Liberty Institute, and WilmerHale. The Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice intervened in support of the plaintiffs on June 23, with Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon expressing concern over laws directly targeting religious practices.
Governor Ferguson, however, criticized the DOJ's involvement, expressing his commitment to protecting children from sexual abuse despite federal opposition. The final decision on the law's constitutionality remains pending as the case continues.
This case underscores the delicate balance between religious liberties and state efforts to combat child abuse, with implications for the relationship between church and state.
