Court Sides With Unvaccinated Michigan Athletes in Mandate Case
Sixteen unvaccinated athletes won another round in their legal battle to play sports, despite Western Michigan University’s mandate that all of its inter-collegiate athletes get the COVID-19 vaccination shot.
In a unanimous published decision issued Oct. 7, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Cincinnati, Ohio, held that the university violated the athletes’ First Amendment rights.
All 16 athletes had filed for religious exemptions, which, according to the court, the university “ignored or denied.”