BECKLEY – A Raleigh County judge has granted a preliminary injunction in a case regarding religious exemptions for immunizations.
Judge Michael E. Froble made his decision July 24 for Miranda Guzman, who had sought an injunction against the state’s compulsory vaccination law that requires children to be vaccinated against chickenpox, hepatitis-b, measles, meningitis, mumps, diphtheria, polio, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough before attending school. She had sued the state Board of Education and the Raleigh County BOE.
As a result of today’s decision, the Raleigh County BOE must allow the plaintiffs’ children to attend school while the case continues.
Froble’s injunction came a day after a teacher asked to join the case as a defendant because she fears for her health if students are allowed to attend school unvaccinated. It also came a day after a Kanawha Circuit Court judge dismissed a similar suit on technical grounds.
Gov. Patrick Morrisey, who publicly supported the lawsuit against the state and county BOE at a press conference last month, praised the injunction that upholds the state’s Equal Protection for Religion Act of 2023.
“Today’s ruling is another legal victory in the fight for religious freedom,” Morrisey said. “No family should be forced to choose between their faith and their children’s education, which is exactly what the unelected bureaucrats on the State Board of Education are attempting to force West Virginians to do.
“My administration will continue to grant religious exemptions to compulsory vaccine requirements and uphold West Virginia’s Equal Protection for Religion Act until this case is fully settled.”
A group that supports vaccinations said it is “incredibly disappointed” in Froble’s decision.
“This means West Virginia’s kids will have less protection from preventable diseases when heading back to school in a few short weeks,” West Virginia Families for Immunizations said. “West Virginia has a proud track record of maintaining high vaccination rates, and the longstanding law that allows only medical exemptions for school required vaccines plays a role in that success.
“For students and teachers who have legitimate medical reasons to forgo vaccination, their lives are now at risk as we see the resurgence of diseases once thought eliminated. We applaud the Board of Education for their strong stance on this issue, and we will continue to work to support them going forward.”
A day earlier, a Raleigh County teacher has asked to join the lawsuit.
The unnamed teacher filed a motion to intervene as a defendant July 23 in Raleigh Circuit Court. Last month, Miranda Guzman filed the lawsuit against the state Board of Education and the Raleigh County BOE seeking a religious exemption from mandatory vaccinations for her four-year-old daughter. Her request is grounded in her faith-based objections to the use of fetal cells to develop vaccines. https://www.legalnewsline.com/west-virginia-record/morrisey-backs-suit-against-state-boe-over-vaccine-rules/article_017483f1-8eeb-42d8-b7bc-adad41f16506.html
The teacher’s filing came on the same day a related case was dismissed by a Kanawha County circuit court judge on procedural grounds. https://www.legalnewsline.com/west-virginia-record/parents-sue-to-halt-morrisey-s-vaccine-exemption-order/article_7be74c03-891e-460c-9fe8-46cdae5e3364.html
On July 23, Kanawha Circuit Judge Kenneth Ballard ruled that lawsuit had not properly provided the 30-day notice required for legal action against a state agency.
Back to the Raleigh County case, Gov. Patrick Morrisey conducted a press conference last month in Beckley regarding the lawsuit and said he supports such a legal challenge to defend the religious liberty of West Virginia families. Morrisey said his administration will respect the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and give meaning to it.
Although Guzman and her daughter initially received an exemption under Morrisey’s Executive Order earlier this year enforcing the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 2023, the exemption later was denied by the Raleigh County Board of Education.
In Wednesday’s filing, the unidentified woman says she is a public-school teacher in Raleigh County who primarily works at a Beckley high school “where she is exposed to students daily.” She says she has multiple preexisting conditions that “place her at a much higher risk than others of serious illness if she contracts a disease.”
“Unvaccinated students are at a higher risk of contracting and spreading vaccine-preventable diseases as compared with their vaccinated peers,” the teacher states. “Due to her medical conditions, exposure to unvaccinated students presents a serious health risk to Jane Doe.
“Thus, permitting parents of students to refuse statutorily mandated vaccinations because of alleged religious or philosophical beliefs puts Jane Doe at significant and unnecessary risk. Therefore, she has standing to intervene in this action and support the application of the plain language of the existing statute, West Virginia Code §16-3-4, which does not permit religious or philosophical exemptions.”
She says the plaintiffs in the case seek to enforce a “religious or philosophical” exemption to the mandatory vaccinations required of school children under W. Va. Code § 16-3-4, which requires public school students in West Virginia to be vaccinated.
“Putting the rhetoric in the complaint aside, to avoid vaccination as required by W.Va. Code § 16-3-4, plaintiffs argue that because defendants are violating the West Virginia Equal Protection for Religion Act, W. Va. Code § 35-1A-1, by not permitting a ‘religious or philosophical’ exemption to W. Va. Code § 16-3-4, and are thus substantially burdening plaintiffs’ beliefs about vaccinating their children in a manner, and that defendants’ actions are not the least restrictive means of furthering the state’s compelling interest in public health.”
The teacher’s filing says the state and county BOEs have independent constitutional duties to provide a safe and efficient educational environment and are obligated to follow the state code until amended by the Legislature. It also says Morrisey’s executive order is “an invalid exercise of the Executive Power” and “violates separation of powers by intruding into the legislative and judicial functions, and intrudes upon the constitutional prerogative of the state and county boards of education.”
It also says the West Virginia Equal Protection for Religion Act does not override or address W. Va. Code § 16-3-4 as written and does not require an exception for religious or philosophical belief.
A leader of a group that supports immunizations expressed disappointment with Morrisey’s support of litigation against a state government agency.
“It’s frustrating to see state leaders wasting time and taxpayer money for something so clearly out of step with what the law — and the people — support,” said Jessie Ice, PhD, co-director of West Virginia Families for Immunizations. “While we agree with the importance of religious freedom, no established religion disavows vaccines. We know that religious exemptions to vaccines are used inappropriately in other states.
“Why would the governor put kids at risk by supporting a lawsuit based on misinformation and junk science? Today’s press conference is a distraction from the real issue: we have vaccine laws that work, and this attempt to undermine them puts West Virginia children and communities at risk.”
Despite Morrisey’s executive order, the state board voted last month to overrule the order and to continue following state law regarding mandatory vaccines.
“The WVBE directed the State Superintendent of Schools to notify all school districts to follow the law that has been in effect since 1937,” the board said in June 12 statement. “This is in line with the Action of the West Virginia Legislature during the 2025 Regular Session, which did not vote in favor of religious exemptions for vaccines.”
Guzman is being represented by Siri, Elizabeth A. Brehm, Buck Dougherty, Catherine Cline and Walker D. Moller of Siri & Glimstad in New York, by Christopher Wiest of Covington, Ky., and by John H. Bryan of West Union. The unidentified teacher is being represented by Thomas J. Hurney Jr. of Jackson Kelly in Charleston and by Marc E. Williams of Nelson Mullins in Huntington.
Raleigh Circuit Court case number 25-C-230
