In Gardner-Alfred v. Federal Reserve Bank of New York, (SD NY, Sept. 25, 2023), a New York federal district court dismissed RFRA, Title VII and First Amendment claims by two Federal Reserve Bank employees who were denied religious exemptions from the FRB's Covid vaccine mandate. The court, in a 52-page opinion, concluded that neither Lori Gardner-Alfred nor Jeanette Diaz had demonstrated that their objections to the vaccine were based on sincere religious beliefs. The court said in part:
Gardner-Alfred claims to be a member of the Temple of Healing Spirit, which is a belief system that she describes as “oppos[ing] the invasive techniques of traditional Western medicine.” ...
Defendant argues that no reasonable jury could find that Gardner-Alfred’s objections to the vaccine were grounded in sincerely held religious beliefs.,,, Defendant argues that there is no evidence Gardner-Alfred enjoyed any relationship with the Temple of Healing Spirit beyond paying for a vaccination exemption package and that her medical history, both before and after she made her request for a religious accommodation, is inconsistent with her alleged religious beliefs....
No reasonable jury thus would be able to conclude that her claimed religious beliefs were anything other than contrived....
... [T]here is undisputed evidence that Diaz would have a motive to “fraudulently hid[e] secular interests behind a veil of religious doctrine.”... Diaz submitted her accommodation request days after attending a secular anti-vaccination webinar featuring materials entitled “White Paper—Experimental Covid Vaccines,” and “Review of Ivermectin Efficacy.”... [S]he subscribed to at least eight newsletters, which sent her several hundred emails, from sources opposing the vaccine on secular grounds....
There also is evidence of Diaz acting in a manner inconsistent with her claimed religious views.... Diaz concedes that she has on many occasions taken medications and received injections without first checking whether they contain or were made or manufactured with aborted fetal cell lines...
Diaz further does not dispute that the views that she now claims to hold are different from those held by the church of which she claims to be a member.....
... She bases her objection on the letter she received from the Colorado Catholic Conference, an organization with which she had no prior affiliation and has no current affiliation.... The letter is available for download from the internet from anyone who seeks it....
