WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that the Pentagon can take disciplinary action against an Air Force Reserve lieutenant colonel who refused to be vaccinated against the coronavirus on religious grounds.
The court’s short, unsigned order contained no reasoning, which is common when judges respond to urgent motions. The three most conservative members of the court — Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Neil M. Gorsuch — noted dissenting opinions but did not explain their opinions.
The court’s order, an interim measure that denied relief while appeals continued, followed a similar decision last month that allowed the Navy to consider the immunization status of 35 of its service members in decisions about where to assign or deploy them . The same three judges disagreed.
In the new case, Lt. Col. Jonathan Dunn, who was relieved of his command after nearly two decades as a pilot, instructor and commander, said he was only “seeking protection from further punishment, including a dismissal.”
Colonel Dunn, who has received many other vaccinations without objection, said he decided the coronavirus vaccine violated his faith after seeing President Biden speak about it, which led him to conclude that “the vaccine is no longer just a medical intervention, but has taken on a symbolic meaning and even sacramental quality.”
This, he said, is “similar to the ancient Roman laws requiring sacrifices to be made to the emperor.”
He added he had been infected with the virus and developed antibodies as a result.
Elizabeth B. Prelogar, the U.S. Attorney General, told judges the Air Force found in its military ruling “that immunization of military personnel is an integral part of military preparedness and critical to protecting the health and safety of military personnel.”
She added that Colonel Dunn had displayed poor judgment justifying his release from command for reasons unrelated to his refusal to be vaccinated.
When Colonel Dunn was asked to choose between getting vaccinated, turning in his resignation, or refusing the vaccine in writing, he instead sent a one-word memorandum to a two-star general several steps up the chain of command: “NUTS !“
The memo repeated Brig. General Anthony McAuliffe’s famous response to a German demand for surrender in 1944 during the Battle of the Bulge. Colonel Dunn’s attorneys told judges he used the term “to demonstrate determination, not disrespect.”
His direct commander disagreed, saying the news was a “highly disrespectful affront to the chain of command” that showed “a shocking lack of military decency”. Ms Prelogar noted that the American officer who broke General McAuliffe’s message included an explanation. “In case you don’t understand what ‘nuts’ means in plain English, it’s the same as ‘go to hell,'” the officer said.
Ms. Prelogar added that Colonel Dunn’s unit must be prepared to be deployed anywhere in the world at short notice, including to countries that require proof of vaccinations for entry.
She noted that the military had long required vaccinations, beginning in 1777 when George Washington ordered the Continental Army to be vaccinated against smallpox. In early 2021, she wrote, nine vaccines would be required for all service members.
In August, the Department of Defense said it would add the coronavirus vaccine to the list. According to court records, 98 percent of Air Force personnel are vaccinated.
The Supreme Court has historically been suspicious of military judgments.
Elsewhere, however, the Biden administration has had mixed success defending its responses to the pandemic before the Supreme Court. In January, judges prevented the administration from enforcing a vaccination or testing mandate for large employers, but allowed a more restricted mandate requiring vaccination of health-care workers at facilities that receive federal funds.