Montana Supreme Court will hear the $35M case tomorrow

by Corney 56 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse

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  JC323

  You do know that seinfeld was a TV show. In Massachusetts there is a good samaritan law but it is a law to prevents people from sueing other people if they attempt to render aide but either causes damage or the person rending the side is unsuccessful in assiting. It is there to encourage aide.in fact if you watch that episode the lawyer mockingly says who says you have to help someone. Justice Kennedy asked the same thing in essence during thr ACA SCOTUS case.

  The general law theory is a duty to rescue. There a few states with narrow duty to rescue laws, but they are rare and very narrow.

  There was a famous case a few years ago in florida where a group of teenagers recorded the drowning of a disabled man and posted it. It made that groupa huge group of assholes but nothing was done illegally, except for maybe breaking the law of not notifying the police of a dead body.

  And data dog. I dont care if you look up my profile and actually thought u would be too much of a dumbass because of the way you cant think for yourself or reason on complex matters.
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  cyberjesus

  This is an appeal to the court decision. They have already been found liable... all they are going to consider is if In The record exists errors.
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  DATA-DOG

  JC323,

  1) I apologize for drinking and posting, and for my rudeness.

  2) Thank you for your astute observation concerning my inability to think for myself and understand complex situations and concepts. I will endeavor to review the sage wisdom contained in your vast array of comments.

  DD
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  peacefulpete

  Blondie..

  Anyone of a long list of professionals (including family counselors, marriage therapists and social workers) in Wisconsin are required to report. Clergy as well.

  https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/48/XX/981/2

  But clergy are exempt only in cases where they gained this information as a confession understood to be confidential.

  That would not be the case when a child or parents of the child reports it.

  
  

  Montana law is written poorly. Allowing churches to claim to have "established practice" of nonreporting

  become a defense for nonreporting.
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  blondie

  Yes, non-religious individuals are less a problem making them required to report child assault/abuse; it is religious organizations that are hard to require to report because of the clergy-penitent policy exemption.

  Also, these reporting requirement is made state by state so it is not consistent nationwide. It is not a federal law.
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  JC323

  Actually if you read the wisconsin law it does say confidential communication or confession... as prescribed the the fatiths tenets. That is what the montana appeal is about. Can the state say these types of communications we allow to be kept confidential and others not, or do we allow the faith to decide that.

  You can look at the state of Delaware. Their law states only confession, but the Delaware case that jwsurvey highlights the settlement stipulation does include that adult JC do fall under that exception.
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  peacefulpete

  3. A member of the clergy is not required to report child abuse information under subd. 1. or 2. that he or she receives solely through confidential communications made to him or her privately or in a confessional setting if he or she is authorized to hear or is accustomed to hearing such communications and, under the disciplines, tenets, or traditions of his or her religion, has a duty or is expected to keep those communications secret. Those disciplines, tenets, or traditions need not be in writing.

  The way I read it, the information received through penitent confession is the only protected situation. The last part further defines the first part. IOW the religion must have some tenet, tradition or discipline of of keeping confessions secret prior to the clergy's receiving that confessional. A child and parental reporting is not deemed an exception.

  Ultimately the WT has never had that tenet. Confessions, at a minimum, are filed and shared with anyone authorized, in cases of pedophilia, they are shared with the WT, and if the person is deemed insufficiently repentant the bare fact of the confession is shared with everyone by announcing they have done something worthy of being disfellowshipped. None of that fits the traditional definition of confidential confession.
  
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  JC323

  Well there is a tenet of the faith for JC. That is what is the argument before the Montana supreme court. It is who is allowed to define confidential communication.
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  SnakesInTheTower

  Confidentiality among elders?

  There are three forms of communication among Witnesses:

  Telephone, telegraph, and tell-an-elder.

  After that, it's Tell-an-elder's-wife.

  Snakes
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  kramer

  JC323 is not an apologist, just is simply describing the legal position.

  very few countries have a compulsory requirement to disclose - and that us usually only for certain professions (e.g social worker or teacher)

  even in the US where certain states have something that looks like a requirement , federal law is superior, and it’s not a requirement

  countries often look at mandatory reporting but rarely go down that road