Clergy Abuse Reporting: Back in the Headlines

In 2011, Cochise County resident Paul Adams confessed to LDS church leaders that he had been sexually abusing his children for years. None of them reported the abuse to police or Department of Child Safety and the abuse c0ntinued.

The clergy did have him repeat his confession in front of his wife and the church excommunicated Adams in 2013… but did nothing for the safety of the children. In 2017, the police arrested Adams, who later committed suicide in jail.

Since then, a civil lawsuit has seen the LDS church in and out of court, with the AZ Supreme Court in 2023 siding with the church claiming the clergy privilege protected the abuse that was revealed in confession.

Now the case is back in the headlines, thanks to a July appeals court ruling. Will the abusers be protected again?

Click here  to read the rest of this post on Secular AZ’s Substack.