Reporting Guidelines

Reporting abuse when the survivor is a child, teenager, or vulnerable adult.

While pastors have the responsibility to protect and ensure the safety of victims regardless of the age or capacity of the person being harmed, the responsibility they have to the civil authority changes depending on the age of the victim. When the victim is a minor or vulnerable adult, the following guidelines are critical.

Guiding Principles of Survivor Advocacy

Reporting to Civil Authorities

Reporting to civil authorities is MANDATED in Alabama when the survivior is a minor or vulnerable adult.

Who Must Report? 

• Every staff member or church leader who has reason to believe, has observed, or has been told that a child or vulnerable adult has been abused is mandated by law to report suspected abuse. 
• Failure to report is a misdemeanor. 
• A person reporting in good faith will not be held criminally liable. 
• The name of the person reporting can be kept confidential. 

When to Report? 

• A report should be made when there is reasonable cause to believe that a child or vulnerable adult has been abused, neglected, or is in danger of being abused. 
• These investigations are handled by the Alabama Department of Human Resources. 
• When determined that a crime may have been committed, Alabama Department of Human Resources will work with law enforcement. 

Facts about Reporting to Alabama Department of Human Resources: 

• Understand that it is the law to immediately report any allegation of abuse. 
• It is not the church leader’s responsibility to determine the validity of the claims. 
• Church leaders often hesitate to report allegations of abuse for fears of damaging relationships with members of the congregation or making a false report. Neither of these concerns should prevent individuals from following the law and putting survivors or potential survivors first. 
• Church leadership can immediately shift its focus to survivor care and safety of the church body. 

Reporting Abuse for Able-Bodied Adult Survivors of Sexual Abuse or Domestic Violence 

While there are many types of domestic abuse including verbal, emotional, spiritual, and financial abuse, our purpose here is to deal primarily with illegal domestic abuse. 

Adult survivors of sexual abuse and domestic violence usually disclose to church leadership because of pre-existing relationship, an expected level of trust with her or his church, and the need for support and care. We must be good stewards of this trust and responsibility. 

Reporting Domestic Abuse:

• Reporting abuse to law enforcement is the able-bodied adult’s choice. Alabama Domestic Violence Hotline- 1-800-650-6522 
• Allowing the able-bodied adult survivor to choose to report or not restores the survivor’s voice. 
• The decision to take legal action against an abuser is difficult and one that should be made under advisement from a counselor or abuse advocate who has experience with abuse cases. 

Regarding Disclosures of Sexual Abuse:

• Survivors have most likely been threatened not to tell. 
• Survivors often experience great shame. 
• Survivors fear what they will have to endure if they tell someone. 
• Survivors fear that they won’t be believed. 

Disclosures of Domestic Violence: 

• Survivors often bring their story to a pastor or church leader they trust only after seeking counseling repeatedly, reading every marriage book, and praying fiercely for change and relief (Is It Abuse?, Strickland, 105). 
• Survivors know something is terribly wrong but may fail to even recognize that the oppression they have experienced is abuse. 

• Survivors may even defend the abuser and blame themselves. 

DO NOT Investigate the allegations; believe the adult survivor:

• You may find it hard to imagine what the survivor is alleging—especially if the alleged abuser’s public presentation is deceptive. 
• The survivor may even tell an incoherent story and use language that is not normally used in a church setting. 
• Regardless of your underlying assumptions, a survivor’s small disclosures should sound a warning signal. 

DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE DANGER FACING A SURVIVOR AND A SURVIVOR’S CHILDREN. YOU MUST TAKE THE ABUSE SERIOUSLY, TAKING CARE NOT TO PUT ANYONE IN THE PATH OF MORE DANGER. 

After disclosure, avoid unintended re-victimization of the adult survivor: 

• After initial disclosure, church leadership should in no way investigate, question, or seek to find any other information from the survivor. 
• Church leadership should not request or require the survivor to disclose to a different audience, elders, deacons, other church members, police, etc.). Again, it is the able-bodied adult survivor’s choice whether or not to report. 
• The survivor has disclosed something very sensitive, and questioning can often infer disbelief or blame.

AFTER A DISCLOSURE, A CHURCH LEADER SHOULD BECOME A COMFORTER AND PROTECTOR.  

Further Steps When the Accused Is a Pastor or Church Leader 

1. If the abuse is against a minor or vulnerable adult, the abuse is illegal. Report to your local Alabama Department of Human Resources immediately. 
2. If the abuser of a minor is a minister or church leader, the abuse should be reported to your associational missionary. 
3. The SBC Hotline for reporting abuse by pastors, church employees, or church volunteers can be reached directly at: (202) 864-5578 or [email protected] 
4. Put the minister, employee, or volunteer on a leave of absence. Though every person in “innocent until proven guilty” in our legal system, when reports of abuse are levied against a church leader, that person should be placed on a leave of absence until the legal process is complete. 
5. Confiscate church technology from the alleged abuser immediately. Though private property cannot be confiscated, any technology owned by the church can be reclaimed. This step prevents altering or deleting any of the information relevant to the investigation. Law enforcement may want to review these items as well.