(LifeSiteNews) — A West Virginia judge ruled that schools may not ban children from attending because they are unvaccinated for religious reasons.
Circuit Judge Michael Froble granted a permanent injunction against the West Virginia Board of Education and the Raleigh County Board of Education on Wednesday, barring them from enforcing vaccine requirements on children whose parents are seeking or have obtained a religious exemption, West Virginia Watch reported.
The ruling, a victory for parents’ rights and medical freedom, declares that the school boards violated West Virginia’s Equal Protection for Religion Act of 2023 by refusing to recognize religious exemptions for vaccination.
Froble said that the boards did not cite evidence that unvaccinated children “pose a risk to anyone else” and noted that the state does not require adults to be vaccinated, including in school settings. He also pointed out that 45 other states allow religious exemptions – all but New York, California, Maine, and Connecticut.
Numerous vaccines were tested using cells of aborted babies, leading many Catholics and other Christians to oppose them. Many are also linked to serious health harms.
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The West Virginia Board of Education announced that it is halting its compulsory vaccination policy as a result of the ruling, which applies statewide, “pending further proceedings on the issue before the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals.”
The board has already appealed a preliminary injunction that Frobles issued earlier in the case.
Gov. Patrick Morrisey celebrated Froble’s decision. “Today’s ruling is a win for every family forced from school over their faith,” he said. “I applaud the court for upholding West Virginia’s Equal Protection for Religion Act.”
“Now is the time for the legislature to act. I am calling on every lawmaker to step forward and solidify this freedom for every West Virginian,” he added.
The Republican governor has fought the Board of Education’s policy and backed the lawsuit against it brought by Raleigh County parents.
In January, Morrisey issued an executive order establishing a process for parents to obtain religious exemptions by objecting in writing. Around 570 families have sought an exemption, according to health officials.
The Board of Education has defied the order, however, voting unanimously in June to urge school districts to follow state vaccination law, which does not explicitly include religious exemptions.
Morrisey has nevertheless had support from the West Virginia public charter school board, which voted to abide by his order, and high-profile figures like Trump Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
