16-1606. IMMUNITY. Any person who has reason to believe that a child has been abused, abandoned or neglected and, acting upon that belief, makes a report of abuse, abandonment or neglect as required in section 16-1605, Idaho Code, shall have immunity from any liability, civil or criminal, that might otherwise be incurred or imposed. Any such participant shall have the same immunity with respect to participation in any such judicial proceeding resulting from such report. Any person who reports in bad faith or with malice shall not be protected by this section. Any privilege between husband and wife, or between any professional person except the lawyer-client privilege, including but not limited to physicians, counselors, hospitals, clinics, day care centers and schools and their clients shall not be grounds for excluding evidence at any proceeding regarding the abuse, abandonment or neglect of the child or the cause thereof.
History:
[(16-1606) 16-1620, added 1976, ch. 204, sec. 2, p. 744; am. 1982, ch. 186, sec. 19, p. 501; am. 1985, ch. 158, sec. 2, p. 417; am. 1995, ch. 328, sec. 1, p. 1097; am. and redesig. 2005, ch. 391, sec. 8, p. 1273.]