In a 2-1 split decision issued yesterday, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston ruled against the Maine members of We The Patriots USA, including the named plaintiff father of a child who was denied entry to school this August for his eighth grade year. You can read the court’s brief ruling here, including the dissent from the judge who would have granted our request for a preliminary injunction. Here is an excerpt from the dissent:
There is no dispute that, because of the vaccination requirement, Childs’ son has been deprived of the opportunity to attend public school. Absent a showing that the vaccine requirement survives strict scrutiny, this is a substantial and irreparable harm. Mirabelli, 607 U.S. at 497; Sindicato Puertoriqueño de Trabajadores v. Fortuño, 699 F.3d 1, 15 (1st Cir. 2012). Further, although the State has a legitimate interest in safeguarding the health of its residents, Does 1-6, 16 F.4th at 37, that interest would not be substantially undermined by an injunction pending appeal. Because the State already permits certain students a grace period to vaccinate and because the vaccination requirement does not apply to certain students who previously invoked a religious objection, it does not appear that allowing Childs’ son and the children of other WTP members (if any) in Maine to attend school for the short period of this appeal would cause significant harm.
Although this is a setback, it is encouraging that we continue to draw dissents in our favor from circuit court judges, something no other organization has consistently done in school vaccine exemption litigation (almost all other cases are dismissed unanimously). You’ll recall that we gained a powerful dissent in our original Connecticut school vaccine case from a Second Circuit judge as well. We view this as an indication that we are making steady progress toward turning the tide of judicial precedent in favor of religious liberty for parents seeking school vaccine exemptions.
And this Maine case is far from over. We have already filed a merits brief with the First Circuit, and at this moment our counsel is preparing an appeal of this First Circuit ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, which will be filed very shortly.
As we previously announced, our goal is to win back religious liberty with regard to school vaccinations for families not only in Maine, but for families in all other states where it’s been stolen from them. And this isn’t a “years from now” goal. Our aim is to win this victory BEFORE THE END OF THIS YEAR.
The only thing that can hold us back is a lack of resources. That’s why tonight we’re calling upon each one of you to make a gift – even just a small one – in support of our legal work. Our Year-End Giving Appeal is underway now, and gifts made to We The Patriots USA are tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. tax law.
We are only as strong as our supporters.