After Supreme Court Win, the Navy Has Reassigned Destroyer Skipper Who Refused Vaccine
The commander of a Navy destroyer who refused the COVID-19 vaccine and sued the service has been removed from command, according to a court filing in his case.
"On Monday, April 11, instead of getting underway with his ship, Navy Commander was 'temporarily reassigned' for 60 days under a new Navy policy that prohibits unvaccinated personnel from going underway on Navy ships," a declaration from the officer's lawyer reported to the court.
The commander, along with more than 30 unnamed officers and enlisted personnel from all the military branches, sued the military over the vaccine mandate in November 2021 in a federal court in Florida. Since then his case, along with one filed by Navy SEALs in Texas, touched off a legal debate about how much power the military has to enforce the vaccine mandate and the nature of the religious exemption process.
Judge Steve Merryday, who is presiding over the commander's case, ruled in early February that, for the sake of "preservation of the status quo" while the suit is being decided, the Navy was barred from reassigning or demoting the commander. A second order, reaffirming and lengthening the term of the injunction, followed Feb. 18.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/supreme-court-win-navy-reassigned-174612160.html
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