An Ohio court issued a restraining order stopping the Air Force from issuing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for airmen with religious exemptions.
The restraining order by Judge Matthew W. McFarland of the District Court for the Southern District of Ohio will stand for 14 days while the judge weighs a preliminary injunction that would last through the entire judicial process.
"Plaintiffs and the putative class members have all allegedly suffered the same injury: violation of their constitutional rights," the ruling reads. "A putative class would consist only of Airmen who have submitted religious accommodation requests, had an Air Force Chaplain define their religious beliefs as sincerely held, and yet their religious accommodation requests have been denied or delayed.
"The facts show defendants have engaged in a pattern of denying religious accommodation requests."
The court gave the Air Force until July 21 to respond with a brief no more than 10 pages on its argument to keep the court from granting the injunction to stop vaccine mandates for those with verified religious exemptions.
"Indeed, of the over 9,000 religious exemption requests, only 109 have been granted by either initial determination or appeal," the court document read. "This amounts to only 1 of religious accommodation requests being granted."