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A federal court July 18 blocked a Washington state law that would have penalized Catholic priests for refusing to report abuse disclosed during Confession, according to a press release from Becket, one of the legal groups representing the plaintiffs.
The measure, signed into law by Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson May 4, would have made Washington the first state in the country to explicitly remove legal protections for the seal of Confession in abuse-related cases. The state had scheduled enforcement of the law to begin July 27.
The plaintiffs in the case — Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Seattle, Bishop Joseph J. Tyson of Yakima, and Bishop Thomas A. Daly of Spokane — challenged the measure, with support from WilmerHale, Becket, and First Liberty Institute.
The bishops argued the statute infringed on First Amendment rights and treated clergy unequally by stripping their confidentiality protections while preserving them for other professions, such as attorneys and counselors.
The court agreed, concluding that the law unjustifiably singled out religious confession. It found that the state “was unable to explain” why clergy were targeted while secular confidentiality remained intact.
“For centuries, Catholic faithful around the world have sought reconciliation with God through the sacrament of confession,” Jean Hill, executive director of the Washington State Catholic Conference said in the release. “This ruling protects that sacred space and ensures that Washingtonians of all religious stripes can live out their beliefs in peace.”
The blocked law would have imposed up to 364 days in jail, a $5,000 fine, and civil penalties on priests who refused to report information learned solely in the confessional — violating Church law, which holds the seal of Confession as inviolable and mandates automatic excommunication for any priest who breaks it.
Federal authorities had also raised constitutional concerns. Shortly after the governor signed the measure into law, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a civil rights investigation, warning that the statute “appears on its face to violate the First Amendment.”
In response to the ruling, Mark Rienzi, president of Becket, stated that the decision reaffirmed a fundamental American principle.
“In America, government officials have no business prying into the confessional,” he said. “This is a win not just for Catholics but for anyone who values religious freedom.”
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