AM, I posted a very simple solution that Uncle Sam can implement . Have Scotus re-interpret Berger’s decision and the constitutionality of clergy privileges and do like the recent Roe v Wade decision leaving it up to the State to legislate statutory reporting laws. End of story. Then the church cannot use the defense that Federal law and the constitution protects confidential communications that conflict State mandatory reporting laws putting the church at risk for a Federal lawsuit.
( Decades ago, Scotus put a doctrine into effect called qualified immunity. Simply put, this decision protects the police nationwide from lawsuits and criminal prosecution. I can write an essay on this. But simply put the police are protected from lawsuits and prosecution in the course of their job, which pretty much gives police a lot of power to hit you, falsely accuse you, steal from you, violate your civil rights, etc. But because of a national outrage and bad publicity these past years due to rampant misconduct, some States on a State level have revoked police QI— to appease the public. But guess what, QI does not come from the State but from SCOTUS so even if a law enforcement officer is sued in a local court and QI applies, even if the State revoked QI, the SCOTUS doctrine applies. Likewise the clergy privilege could apply even if invalidated by a State with a reporting statute. —I may be wrong.
But why only pick on the church? If you get rid of the constitution altogether criminals will have zero protection. No more guns and no more privacy inside people’s houses to commit crimes. Police can go inside anyone’s house and put an end of crime altogether. No more 5th Amendment to protect criminals either. Criminals will need to confess to crimes. No more attorney’s defending guilty people either. No more criminals. No legal defenses. Simple.