BECKLEY — Gov. Patrick Morrisey and supporters of religious exemptions to West Virginia’s law requiring mandatory immunizations for public and private school students received another win Thursday after a Raleigh County judge issued a ruling allowing the children of three parents to attend school with no vaccinations this year.

After two hours of arguments at the Raleigh County Judicial Center in Beckley Thursday morning, 14th Judicial Circuit Judge Michael Froble granted a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement by the Raleigh County Board of Education – as directed by the West Virginia Board of Education – of the compulsory vaccination law due to those parents being granted religious exemptions by the Department of Health.

State code requires children attending school to show proof of immunization for diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, varicella and hepatitis B unless proof of a medical exemption can be shown. But Morrisey issued an executive order in January, allowing for religious and conscientious objections to the state’s school vaccination mandates due to the Equal Protection for Religion Act, passed in 2023.

“To make clear, the court believes that the compulsory vaccination law is not valid without a religious exemption, that constitutional law and constitutional review indicate that statute itself is not constitutional and is invalid without a religious exception,” Froble said from the bench.

Raleigh County parent Miranda Guzman filed a lawsuit in June on behalf of her child seeking an injunction against the state Board of Education, State Superintendent of Schools Michele Blatt, and the Raleigh County Board of Education. Two other parents – Amanda Tulley and Carley Hunter – later joined her lawsuit.

The lawsuit asked the court to issue a preliminary and permanent injunction to block implementation of the compulsory vaccine law without including a religious exemption as required by Morrisey’s executive order. It also asked the court to declare that the compulsory vaccine law without a religious exemption violated the Equal Protection for Religion Act.

“Our position is … that there is an EPRA violation here,” said Christopher Wiest, one of the attorneys representing the Raleigh County parents, during arguments. “Is the government here, the defendants, denying the plaintiffs the government benefit of the ability to attend school? I don’t think there’s a dispute on that. So, I don’t think they can reasonably argue that there’s not a substantial burden on these plaintiffs’ religious exercise.”

Thursday’s preliminary injunction only allows the parents that are party to the lawsuit to continue to enroll their unvaccinated children in Raleigh County Schools for the school year beginning in August. The ruling does not apply to all 55 counties, but Froble’s decision could cause the state Board of Education and county school boards to be dragged into courtrooms if other parents also challenge the compulsory vaccination law.

The state Board of Education voted unanimously on June 11 for a motion requiring Blatt to issue guidance to county school systems that they follow the compulsory school vaccination law that does not permit religious exemptions for students, ignoring Morrisey’s executive order.

Speaking after Thursday’s ruling, state Board of Education President Paul Hardesty said he would need to meet with fellow board members to determine their next steps, which could include an appeal to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals.

“From a public health perspective, this was disappointing,” Hardesty said. “I don’t want to say anything out of school, no pun intended, but there was a lot to digest here this morning. We’re going to find out what our next steps are and proceed from there.”

Hardesty said the Department of Education would be releasing guidance later Thursday to all 55 county school systems regarding their directive last month on following the compulsory vaccine law.

“For our counties that are now scratching their heads and trying to figure out what to do, the department, as we speak, is working on putting out a statement to all 55 counties as well as the press, and we’ll have that by the close of business today for you all,” Hardesty said.

An effort to codify Morrisey’s executive order failed when the West Virginia House of Delegates voted down a heavily amended Senate Bill 460, which would have allowed for a religious vaccine exemption for public schools while letting private and parochial schools to set their own vaccine requirements. With the failure of that bill, Morrisey issued additional guidance to the Department of Health on implementing his executive order.

Morrisey took to social media Thursday to celebrate the ruling and issued a press release.

“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.”