A jury in New Jersey delivered a verdict in favor of a Catholic groundskeeper fired over a religious exemption to the experimental COVID-19 jab, awarding him $671,000.

“Today we were blessed to secure NJ’s first jury verdict in favor of an employee fired for religious exemption from COVID vaccine mandate! Took a jury less than 4 hours to rule in favor of Christian Essex County Hospital Center groundskeeper Teddy DeBlasio awarding $671,000,” attorney John D. Coyle of Coyle Law Group said.

“It was revealed at trial that Essex County denied each and every request from a Christian employee and granted every Muslim exemption. That isn’t an exaggeration. Catholic groundskeeper could not safely test and mask but a Muslim NURSE could test and mask,” he continued.

“Essex County determined that Teddy DeBlasio—with the crown of thorns tattooed on his wrist to remind him to think of Jesus with his actions—did not have sincere beliefs but a Muslim employee who photocopied another Muslim’s exemption, did. (Both were granted),” Coyle said.

“Now we turn to punitive damages and attorneys fees. We can’t undo the godless evil oppression we endured through the ‘pandemic’ but today was a very important step forward. A jury of 5 women and 3 men, all races, religions, and political beliefs, came together as one,” he added.

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DeBlasio, who was raised Catholic and describes himself as Christian, told the court that his objection was based on sincerely held religious beliefs concerning vaccines he believed were tested or developed using fetal cell lines, according to the law firm’s statement.

The case, DeBlasio v. Essex County, was filed in New Jersey Superior Court under docket number ESX-L-5665-22. Information about civil cases and court procedures is available through the New Jersey Judiciary.

DeBlasio’s lawyers argued at trial that the county handled religious exemption requests differently depending on employees’ faiths. The law firm said evidence presented to jurors showed Christian and Catholic requests were denied in February 2022 while Muslim employees received exemptions.

The firm further argued that the county considered DeBlasio, whose job involved groundskeeping work such as cutting grass, planting flowers, removing snow and raking leaves, a health and safety risk. At the same time, the attorneys said, unvaccinated employees in patient-facing positions were permitted to continue working if they followed masking and testing requirements.

Those assertions reflect the plaintiff’s trial position as summarized by his attorneys. Shore News Network has not independently reviewed the full trial record or a response from Essex County.

The verdict is the latest victory for individuals refusing the experimental shot on religious grounds.

In 2024, a federal jury awarded a Tennessee woman nearly $700,000 after she was fired from BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee (BCBST) for refusing to comply with its COVID-19 jab mandate.

In addition, a jury awarded a Michigan woman more than $12 million after she was fired from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan for refusing the COVID-19 jab.

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“A federal jury in Detroit last week awarded nearly $12.7 million to a Catholic woman who sued her former employer, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, after she was fired in 2022 for refusing to get a COVID-19 shot. Lisa Domski worked for Blue Cross for 33 years, most recently as an IT specialist. In 2021, she sought a religious exemption to her employer’s vaccine mandate, saying it violated her sincerely held Catholic beliefs because the vaccines were developed or tested using fetal cells,” Children’s Health Defense wrote in 2024.

“Blue Cross denied Domski’s request and fired her on Jan. 5, 2022. She sued the company in August 2023, alleging religious discrimination and violations of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act. In their Nov. 8 verdict, jurors sided with Domski, awarding her $10 million in punitive damages, $315,000 in back pay, $1.375 million in lost future wages and $1 million for noneconomic damages,” it continued.

More from the Associated Press:

Domski’s attorney, Jon Marko, said she worked 100% remotely as an IT specialist during the pandemic; 75% before COVID-19 hit in 2020.

Even without the vaccine, “she wasn’t a danger to anybody,” Marko said in an interview after the trial.

 

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