School Sued After Refusing Religious Immunization Waiver

Parents of a Rochester, New York area high school student have sued the Rush-Henrietta Central School District, seeking a temporary restraining order and $1 million in damages for civil rights violations, according to an AP article in yesterday's NY Newsday. The federal lawsuit alleges that school officials barred plaintiffs' son from the lacrosse team because he refused to get a tetanus shot for religious reasons. The parents had obtained a waiver from immunizations on religious grounds under New York's Public Health Law. School officials claim that waiver covers only academics, and not athletics.