The Foundation for Moral Law, an Alabama nonprofit dedicated to the defense of religious liberty, applauded the November 29 Doster v. Kendall decision of the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirming a lower court class-wide injunction prohibiting the Air Force from requiring personnel with religious objections to undergo COVID vaccinations.
Eighteen plaintiffs sued Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall and others in February 2022.
Prior to the lawsuit, the Air Force had required all personnel to get the Covid-19 vaccine. The plaintiffs in the case argued the mandate violated their religious freedom under the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993. The District Court agreed. The District Court later expanded the order into a class injunction protecting all USAF personnel with religious objections.
The Air Force appealed to the Sixth Circuit, and the Foundation filed an amicus brief supporting those who had religious objections. The Sixth Circuit unanimously affirmed the lower court’s order.
The Foundation argued that, although the Air Force had established a policy for considering religious exemptions, the Air Force, in fact, did nothing but rubberstamp denials. The plaintiffs argued that the Air Force granted about 135 of 10,000 requests for vaccine exemptions for religious reasons — and then only to those planning to leave the service.
The Liberty Counsel, a non-profit organization that litigates in cases the organization believes involve religious freedom, stated, “The Air Force even agreed that it has not granted any religious exemptions to anyone who does not plan to leave the service within a year. On the other hand, in December 2021, there were a total of 2,047 service members currently with medical exemptions and 2,247 service members currently with administrative exemptions.”
The Court agreed and further reasoned that because the Air Force granted thousands of medical and administrative exemptions, their argument that military necessity prevents religious objections was unpersuasive. The Court concluded that First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act both protect military personnel.
Judge Roy Moore, Founder and President Emeritus of the Foundation and a West Point graduate, hailed the decision as “a long-overdue victory for military personnel over a flawed and useless policy that has ruined the careers of many soldiers and the health of many others.”
Foundation Senior Counsel John Eidsmoe, primary author of the amicus brief and a retired Air Force Judge Advocate, noted, “The Sixth Circuit accepted our argument that the USAF failed to give its personnel the individualized determinations that the Constitution requires in Stanley v. Illinois.” Colonel Eidsmoe added, “I love the Air Force, but I also love the men and women who wear Air Force blue, and I believe they are entitled to the protection of the Constitution they have sworn to defend.”
