North Cook News

Soon after receiving the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine as required by an Illinois school district as a condition of employment, a staff member named Lisa reportedly developed Bell's palsy.

That was before Liberty Counsel attorney Matthew Staver sent a demand letter informing Glenview School District 34 officials that requiring workers to be inoculated is against federal and Illinois state law.

“Any drug authorized under the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) must have full, informed consent,” Staver told the North Cook News. “You cannot coerce anyone to take these injections without their full informed and free consent. There are also many other laws that we cited, including the Illinois Healthcare Right of Conscience Act.”

The Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act protects residents against discrimination based on health care choices and Staver said his law firm is reviewing Lisa’s case for possible legal recourse. Lisa chose to not release her last name at this time, according to a press release.

“She didn't want the injection but felt pressure to do so by the school district under threat of losing her job so she did take the injection before we ended up sending our demand letter,” Staver said in an interview. “She came to our attention through other people who contacted us after they refused to take the injection. That’s how we got involved.”

In his April 7 letter to Dr. Dane Delli, superintendent of Glenview School District 34, Staver pointed out that the state of Illinois had not issued or authorized the school district’s COVID vaccine mandate. 

“Gov. (J.B.) Pritzker has not mandated that every Illinois resident take COVID vaccinations (nor can he), nor has he authorized subdivisions of the state of Illinois to mandate COVID vaccinations or withhold government benefits from those who decline. Statewide in Illinois, COVID cases have been declining without mandatory vaccinations," Staver wrote.

Since receiving the demand letter from Liberty Counsel law firm, the Glenview School Board has reversed its mandatory vaccine policy.

“I note that the District has mandated only that its staff receives the immunization and that any such mandate has not been directed to students,” wrote Glenview School District 34 Superintendent Dr. Dane Delli in his April 15 response. “I further am writing to inform you that any employee having a qualifying religious objection to receiving the vaccine will be provided an exemption from the mandate. The School District has already provided multiple employees with a religious exemption form for purposes of asserting their religious rights, upon request.”

Controversy is nothing new to Liberty Counsel. The law firm has been at the forefront of litigation that defends against civil liberties and religious freedom violations since the coronavirus and its resulting shutdowns emerged last year .

"Illinois has been one of those places where there has been a lot of pressure to get vaccinated, and it's not just Illinois,” Staver said. “It's across the board. A number of state governments, private employers, and the federal government are clearly pushing it. So, people are being pressured on a lot of different levels and we've been working with many of these individuals who are getting similar ultimatums.”

In May 2020, Liberty Counsel filed a federal lawsuit against Pritzker on behalf of Romanian churches over executive orders that had banned religious gatherings. 

“Gov. Pritzker was restricting and discriminating against churches,” Staver added. “Then he ultimately said that churches will not be able to get back anywhere close to 50% occupancy for a year and a half or until there's widespread availability of vaccines. Of course, that has all changed now with the litigation we brought in Illinois.”