Dozens of state patrol soldiers, firefighters and other state employees have filed a lawsuit against Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, Democrat, for his COVID-19 vaccine warrant, alleging that he is exceeding his authority and violating state legislation.
The lawsuit, filed Friday by Seattle attorney Nathan Arnold in Walla Walla County Superior Court, sets out seven lawsuits against Inslee and pays special attention to the nature of the state’s religious exemptions, which the plaintiffs allege that they constitute a deprivation of religious liberty under the state. Constitution.
In August, Inslee ordered all state employees to receive the COVID-19 vaccine before October 18 or to be fired. Washington State’s vaccine mandate is one of the strictest in the country.
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Among the more than 90 individual plaintiffs, more than 53 are employees of the State Patrol, some are employees of the Department of Corrections and others work for the fire department or the state shuttle system.
“Some plaintiffs have applied, as a right by statute and right guaranteed by the Washington Constitution, for a religious exemption from the governor’s term,” the lawsuit says in part. “As a condition for considering the plaintiffs’ religious exemptions, the State or its agencies have required the submission of a ‘religious questionnaire’ which unduly inquired into protected private matters in relation to health decisions and religious sentiment, the beliefs and worship “.
The lawsuit included screenshots of emails in which Inslee’s attorney general, Kathryn Leathers, discussed the language of exemption with the state attorney general’s office. The complaint noted what Leathers wrote in an email dated August 3, 2021: “Exemptions: safe medical; and religious (if we have to do it; if so, as narrow as possible).”
The lawsuit went on to allege that some of the plaintiffs who submitted the requested religious exemption questionnaire “have questioned their religious sincerity and have been forced to provide additional information.”
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“Plaintiffs face deprivation of their life, liberty, or property as a direct consequence of both state investigations into the religious questionnaire that are inconsistent with due process, and the governor’s mandate not to approved correctly or legally and that is is not consistent with due process, ”the lawsuit says.
“These requirements fully comply with the law. We look forward to answering in court,” an Inslee spokesman wrote in an email, according to The Seattle Times.