Washington Bishops Sue Over Law Challenging Confessional Seal Rights

In a significant legal move, Roman Catholic bishops from Washington state have launched a lawsuit against a recently enacted law they argue infringes on their religious freedom. The legislation in question mandates clergy to report instances of child abuse, even if disclosed during the sacramental confession, which the bishops say violates their First Amendment rights.

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington at Tacoma, the lawsuit includes plaintiffs from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle and the Dioceses of Spokane and Yakima, along with several Catholic priests. The defendants named in the lawsuit include Washington’s Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson, Democratic Attorney General Nicholas Brown, and every county prosecuting attorney in the state.

The controversial Senate Bill 5375, signed into law earlier this month by Gov. Ferguson, incorporates clergy into the list of mandatory reporters of child abuse. Unlike other professional privileged communications, such as attorney-client or doctor-patient, the new law removes the exemption for confessional communications, compelling clergy to break their vow of confidentiality under the Catholic Church’s Code of Canon Law.

Current Washington law protects confessional communications from being disclosed without the consent of the penitent. The lawsuit challenges the new law’s constitutionality, citing it as a direct challenge to religious freedom and a potential violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

According to the Code of Canon Law, “The sacramental seal is inviolable; therefore it is absolutely forbidden for a confessor to betray in any way a penitent in words or in any manner and for any reason.” A breach can result in the excommunication of the offending priest.

The lawsuit seeks to have Senate Bill 5375 declared unconstitutional and prevent its enforcement. The bishops argue that the law could deter penitents from engaging in the sacrament, thereby impacting their spiritual connection with the church and risking their “eternal damnation to Hell.”

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division has already initiated an investigation into the law, suggesting it may indeed conflict with the First Amendment.

However, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, a secular legal organization, supports the law, arguing that it closes a “dangerous loophole” and emphasizes the government’s role in protecting children from abuse. “Religious freedom does not include the right to conceal abuse,” stated FFRF Legal Director Patrick Elliott in a statement.