OLYMPIA (WA)
MSN [Redmond WA ]
July 18, 2025
By Jack Birle, Washington Examiner
A federal judge on Friday blocked a Washington state law requiring Catholic priests to report suspected child abuse or neglect, including any information they learn from sacramental confession, raising concerns about religious liberty.
The law, Senate Bill 5375, was slated to go into effect on July 27, but was blocked Friday after Judge David Estudillo of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington granted a preliminary injunction.
The preliminary injunction blocks the state from enforcing the law against all Catholic priests who fall “directly under the administration of” the three archbishops listed as plaintiffs in the lawsuit. The three archbishops include Paul Etienne of Seattle, Thomas Daly of Spokane, and Joseph Tyson of Yakima, effectively covering all Catholic priests in the state.
“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 a statement Friday. “This ruling protects that sacred space and ensures that Washingtonians of all religious stripes can live out their beliefs in peace.”
Attorneys for Washington state officials said the court should not grant the injunction, arguing the law “in no way entangles the State in internal church decisions” and that “the public’s interest in
If state officials appeal the preliminary injunction, they would have to take the case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.
The injunction marks a significant victory for religious liberty advocates who had raised concerns about the law as it made its way through the state legislature earlier this year. The DOJ’s Civil Rights Division intervened in the case last month, siding with Catholic leaders and arguing that Washington state violated the First and 14th Amendments.
“The Justice Department will not sit idly by when states mount attacks on the free exercise of religion,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said at the time.