Reference no: EM133810676

Question

Your belong to the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-Day Saints more commonly known as the Mormons. While the church has elders, it does not have clergy in the same way that Catholic and mainstream Protestant churches do. You tell one of the elders that you committed a murder and that you want God to forgive you. Can the prosecutor compel the elder to testify against you or is what you told him subject to priest-penitent privilege? Explain your response in detail using concepts from your readings. response D Priest-penitent privilege keeps conversations between pastors and penitents private. This means that individuals can access spiritual guidance without risking a criminal charge. This right extends to private discussions within a guidance setting. It includes speaking to non-clergy religious authorities, such as LDS elders. To make use of the privilege, that communication needs to occur under cover of darkness, in an expectation of anonymity. Different states define how far this privilege extends, but courts tend to enforce it since they know how precious the messages of spiritual religion can be. This means that confessions to LDS leaders are likely not to be violated and prosecutors cannot press individuals to testify about them.