Arizona Court Clarifies Doctor’s Duty to Report Child Sex Abuse

An Arizona physician had no duty to report child sexual abuse he learned about in his role as a religious bishop, rather than in his capacity as a family doctor, a state appeals court said.

A lower court properly ruled for John Herrod and his medical practice in a lawsuit alleging malpractice and related claims based on his failure to tell law enforcement about his patient’s admission during a religious counseling session that he sexually abused his daughter, a split Arizona Court of Appeals, Second Division, said Monday. For a doctor’s statutory reporting duty to arise, the information must come ...