The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has initiated a lawsuit against Washington State, challenging Senate Bill 5375, a controversial new law that mandates clergy, including Catholic priests, to report cases of child abuse or neglect, even when such information is acquired during the sacred Sacrament of Confession.
Filed on June 23, the lawsuit argues that the law infringes on the First Amendment’s Free Exercise of Religion clause, as well as the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
The DOJ contends that the legislation forces priests into an impossible situation—choosing between their religious commitments and facing potential criminal penalties.
Senate Bill 5375, signed into law by Governor Bob Ferguson on May 2 and set to take effect on July 27, 2025, requires clergy members to report any credible knowledge of child abuse, regardless of how that knowledge is obtained.
The DOJ asserts that the law disproportionately targets Catholic priests, for whom violating the seal of Confession can lead to excommunication, a fundamental tenet of Catholic doctrine.
Harmeet K. Dhillon, Assistant Attorney General, criticized the law as an infringement on religious freedom and pointed out that it unfairly distinguishes clergy from other professionals who also have mandatory reporting obligations.
“Laws that explicitly target religious practices such as the Sacrament of Confession in the Catholic Church have no place in our society,” Dhillon stated.
She further emphasized that the law compels priests in Washington to make a stark choice between their spiritual responsibilities and the fear of criminal repercussions.
Supporters of Senate Bill 5375, led by the Clergy Accountability Coalition, counter that the law is not an attack on religion but rather a measure aimed at protecting children.
They argue that SB 5375 applies to all faiths and aligns Washington state with numerous other regions such as New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Guam, Texas, West Virginia, North Carolina, and Oklahoma, which have enacted similar laws mandating clergy to report abuse.
Sharon Huling, co-founder of the Catholic Accountability Project, revealed that existing laws in the state already allow for the removal of privileges for other mandatory reporters—like parents—when it comes to cases of child abuse or neglect.
“5375 does not specify other mandatory reporters because state statute already removes privileged communications for them when the knowledge pertains to child abuse or neglect,” Huling explained.
Meanwhile, Mary Dispenza, a former nun and abuse survivor who is also a co-founder of Survivors Against Abuse by Priests, shared her harrowing experience of confessing abuse to her priest, only to receive no action in return.
“I was raped by the parish priest when I was seven and I buried it,” she recounted. “At 18, as a young nun, I finally told my confessor about the rape naming my abuser, whom he knew. He did nothing, and the pedophile priest went on to abuse 40 more children in Los Angeles. The Catholic seal of confession did not protect me.”
Critics of SB 5375, including Representative Jim Walsh (R-Aberdeen), have labeled the law deeply flawed.
In his statement on social media following the DOJ’s lawsuit announcement, Walsh noted the constitutional defects of the bill, claiming it violates Article 1, Section 11, of the Washington State Constitution.
“We want to end child sex abuse, but SB 5375 was never the right way. Current Gov. Ferguson should have known better than to sign it. Fail,” he wrote.
On the day Governor Ferguson signed SB 5375, Bishop Thomas Daly of Spokane declared that priests in his diocese would honor the sanctity of Confession, even at the risk of facing imprisonment.
In defense of the law, Governor Ferguson emphasized the priority of child protection. At the signing event, he remarked, “Protecting our kids, first, is the most important thing. This bill protects Washingtonians from abuse and harm.”
The bill was presented by Senator Noel Frame (D-Seattle), co-sponsored by Senators Claire Wilson, Jessica Bateman, Manka Dhingra, T’wina Nobles, and Javier Valdez, and passed through the House with a vote of 64-31 and the Senate with 28-20.
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