Push for clergy to report abuse stalls in deeply Mormon Utah

By SAM METZ
Associated Press

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A push to mandate members of religious clergy report child sexual abuse when it’s brought to their attention is facing pushback from churches throughout the United States. That’s the case in Utah, where four separate proposals to narrow the so-called clergy-penitent privilege loophole have not received hearings in the statehouse as lawmakers prepare to adjourn for the year. Religious groups who want to maintain the status quo argue the First Amendment protects the seal of confession and have revisited a years-long lobbying strategy that includes circulating questionable studies about the effects of reforms. Similar proposals are also under debate in states including Vermont, Washington and Kansas.