A profound discussion among, as WFB puts it, "a very thoughtful lawyer, a very

thoughtful doctor, and a very thoughtful priest" on the subject of their obligations when told a secret that has not only past but future implications. Monsignor Cohalan explains that for priests, "The problem is very simple.... Canon law, which would take precedence in a matter concerning the sacraments, says with the utmost possible simplicity and finality that the seal of the confessional is inviolable, period"--even on pain of jail. In both the legal and the psychiatric professions the law and the ethics are less clear. As Mrs. Pilpel points out, "in some states there are no privileges of a certain type.... If a person is called upon to make a disclosure, he cannot effectively plead a doctor-patient privilege in a state, for example, like Texas, where there is no such privilege." For Dr. Tamarkin, "Here's the problem about this whole issue: it's between two goods, in a way. On the one hand you want the patient to be able to see you as in their corner, on their side. On the other hand, you don't want to see somebody going around murdering other people. So you are caught in between two allegiances."