Church Offers Statement on Help Line and Abuse

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' own official newsroom statement, published August 2022, responding to source 5 above (the Associated Press investigation). It states the AP's account "seriously mischaracterized" the help line's nature and purpose, calling the story "oversimplified and incomplete" and "a serious misrepresentation of the Church and its efforts." It describes the help line as instrumental in ensuring legal reporting requirements are met, giving local volunteer leaders access to expert direction on whether and how to report, and states that help-line conversations address stopping the abuse, caring for the victim, and meeting reporting obligations, "even in cases when the law provides clergy-penitent privilege or restricts what can be shared from private ecclesiastical conversations." It also cites other prevention measures, including mandatory training for leaders who work with children.