The Supreme Court refused Monday to grant an Air Force Reserve officer relief from the COVID-19 vaccine mandate despite his religious objection to getting the shots.
Justices Neil M. Gorsuch, Samuel A. Alito and Clarence Thomas would have issued an injunction protecting Lt. Col. Jonathan Dunn from further punishment for not getting the vaccine.
Without comment, the high court refused to block the mandate for Col. Dunn to get vaccinated while he appeals his case.
The lower court sided with the government after Col. Dunn protested against being inoculated, arguing that he is a Christian and won’t abide by the societal requirement. The crux of his complaint is that vaccine mandates have taken on a religious nature and he won’t participate in the “religious ritual.”
Col. Dunn said he already had COVID-19 last year with mild symptoms and was able to pass his physical fitness test months later. He also has antibodies from natural immunity, he argued.
After refusing the shot requirement, he was notified that his request for religious accommodation was denied and he could either take the vaccine or retire.
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He was removed from his command, according to court papers. He would qualify for a military pension in roughly one year.
“Applicant does not challenge respondents’ authority to mandate the COVID-19 vaccine,” his lawyers argued. “He seeks only to enjoin respondents from inflicting punishments that deprive him of his First Amendment freedoms and irreparably harm his career, including by categorically precluding him from serving in any unit, even where a potential commander may not object to his unvaccinated status.”
The military issued its COVID-19 vaccine requirement last August.
The federal government had told the court that even if the mandate interfered with Col. Dunn’s religious exercise, the Air Force had a compelling interest in requiring the shots.
“The Air Force has determined, as an exercise of its military judgment, that vaccination of service members is an essential component of military readiness,” read the Justice Department’s brief.
Last month the high court gave the Biden administration a partial win in another case brought by a group of Navy SEALs. The justices said the Navy could reassign service members who did not get vaccinated — but could not dismiss them.
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According to NPR, the military requires service members to get nine other vaccines and there’s a history for mandates dating back to 1777, when George Washington ordered his army to get vaccinated against smallpox.
For more information, visit The Washington Times COVID-19 resource page.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
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