9-year old girl hearing voices of the Devil.

[Jehanne]

Well then ethically, he should be bound to report this. If not, I'd question the friendship. Clearly he told you about the situation. Perhaps it was his subtle way of asking you to help. CYS can always be called anonymously. When that occurs, they are not allowed to reveal the source.

As a victim of abuse, I can tell you that by staying silent, that is not helping this little girl. In fact, it only aids oppression and the abuser more. Hoping that "someone" in her circle of friends and family will intervene makes my heart hurt for that child.

I'm going to step out of this thread now because if I don't, I might say things that I won't be sorry for saying.

I see things nearly everyday in my life which cause me concern.  For instance, several years ago I saw a man, some friends of his, and especially, a little two to three year old toddler, who sere standing a few feet from a large river that was passed flood stage.  The whole situation caused me great concern, but calling the police could have put me in an even worse situation, and would have disrupted my schedule, as I was on the way to an appointment.

My OP, by the way, does not just apply to this little girl, which is why I posted it in the religion -- christian section.  You can google these types of situations; I haven't but I am sure that they are all over the place and are happening all the time.  As others have said, it can become a very dangerous situation, mixing a meme and a mental illness.

By the way, if I hear anything more about this little girl, I'll pass it on the board, absent any personally identifiable information, of course.  Confidentially laws do still apply, even in the situation of child abuse reports, which means that if I do report it, I will probably be obligated to stop talking about it here.  If the opportunity arises, I will suggest to my friend that he consider reporting it.