On September 21, 2022, the DEA appeared in court for oral arguments alongside the PBA in our lawsuit challenging the City’s Vaccine Mandate. The case was heard by Judge Lyle Frank in Manhattan Supreme Court. The DEA argued the Mandate was arbitrary, capricious, and illegal. We are asking the Court to end the Mandate in light of the existing violence and crime in New York City which requires more, not less, Detectives on the street, in light of the Mayor’s lifting the Mandate for private sector employees and multi-million dollar athletes, and also in light of evolving science which has shown that the Vaccine simply does not prevent transmission of the virus. Although the City attorneys asked the court to dismiss our lawsuit on various grounds, we are pleased to advise that Judge Frank has denied the City’s motion and has ordered our case to proceed forward expeditiously on the merits. The court directed the City to submit further arguments within 10 days as to why our lawsuit should not be granted. It is unclear how soon after that the Court will issue a final order on the merits of our case. Be assured that we will keep you advised of any developments as soon as they occur.
The PBA’s lawsuit, which seeks the same relief as our lawsuit, was heard in court at the same time as our case; and Judge Frank granted the PBA’s lawsuit and found that the Mandate was invalid in so far as it created a new condition of employment for Police Officers and was invalid because the law does not allow termination of employment of unvaccinated members.
The City immediately appealed this decision to the Appellate Division, First Department and took the position that they can move forward with pending LWOPs and terminations pending their appeal.
The DEA immediately challenged the City’s position and through a combination of legal pressure and political pressure on City Hall, and negotiations with the Department, we were able to force the City to halt any pending “leave without pay” status and any terminations of our members.
On September 27, 2022, the DEA was sent notification by the NYC Law Department that, as of September 26, 2022, “the New York City Police Department will voluntarily refrain from placing any uniformed member of service on leave without pay or terminating them due to their non-compliance with the vaccine mandate until the appellate court decides the City’s appeal in connection with the Decision and Order.”
We will continue to vigorously press our case, and support the PBA in the City’s appeal of its case in the Appellate Division. We will continue to press for the City’s full compliance, including the reinstatement of any members who were terminated or placed on Leave Without Pay status due to the Mandate. In the meantime, our lawsuit continues before Judge Frank and we are hopeful for a positive decision in the coming weeks permanently striking down the Mandate.
