Abstract
This Note analyzes the role of religious exemptions in federal and state child welfare statutes in facilitating abuse within the Troubled Teen Industry (TTI), a loosely defined network of residential treatment programs, wilderness camps, and therapeutic boarding schools. Although religious exemptions were originally intended to safeguard religious liberty and parental rights, their statutory design has produced significant regulatory gaps that permit certain faith-affiliated institutions to operate with minimal oversight. By tracing the historical development of these exemptions and examining their contemporary application across multiple jurisdictions, this Note demonstrates how religious status can function as a shield against meaningful accountability. It argues that comprehensive reform—particularly the elimination of religious exemptions as a condition of federal funding and the establishment of uniform baseline standards—is necessary to ensure consistent child welfare protections for all institutions exercising custodial authority over minors.
Recommended Citation
Shailey Mussey,
“Faith as a Shield”: Challenging Religious Exemptions to Child Welfare Statutes in Response to Institutional Child Abuse,
50
S. Ill. U. L.J.
417
(2026).
Available at:
https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/siulj/vol50/iss2/9