Federal Judge Blocks Air Force on Giving Punishment for Members Who Refused to Take Covid-19 Vaccines

A federal judge in Cincinnati is stopping Air Force action against 18 servicemembers fighting the COVID-19 vaccine including 11 who currently or recently served at Wright-Patterson in Dayton.  

The servicemembers sued earlier this year over the denial of religious accommodations for refusing shots. 

The First Amendment and Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA) does, in fact, apply to the military, contrary to the assertions of the Biden Justice Department, Judge Matthew McFarland wrote in Thursday’s temporary order. 

“From the time our Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence and, later, the United States Constitution, United States citizens have been provided with the freedom to practice their religious beliefs as they deem fit,” the judge’s decision reads. 

“Religious liberty was just as important to those who founded this nation as it is today.” The attorney for the servicemembers, Chris Wiest, called the order “a victory for religious liberty.” 

“We were thrilled with this decision and the opportunity to get to defend the constitutional rights of those who defend all of our constitutional rights.” The preliminary injunction is not a final ruling, but a request to make this case a class action one is still pending.