Opinion ID: 2543380
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Oklahoma's Child Abuse Reporting Laws

Text: ¶ 11 Oklahoma's child abuse reporting laws express the State's strong public interest in protecting children from abuse by the policy of mandatory reporting of actual and suspected child abuse or neglect to appropriate authorities and agencies. [17] The statutory scheme imposes upon all health care professionals (teachers as well as all other persons) an obligation to report in good faith all suspected instances of child abuse to the Department of Human Services. [18] No privilege or contract will relieve any person from the legally mandated reporting requirement. [19] The knowing and willful failure to report child abuse (or the making of a false report) is a misdemeanor. [20] Any one acting in good faith and exercising due care in reporting child abuse has immunity from any liability, civil or criminal, that might otherwise be incurred. [21] ¶ 12 There is neither ambiguity in, nor conflict between, the various terms of the statutory reporting laws. Their legislative intent can easily be divined from the plain language of the statutes. [22]