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Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner speaks to reporters on Nov. 7, 2022. Prosecutor defended rule as public safety measure Jury could view comments as hostile to religion The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office cannot escape a lawsuit from an employee who was fired for refusing to comply with a Covid-19 vaccine requirement on religious grounds, a federal appeals court ruled. The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on Monday overturned a lower court ruling that former Assistant District Attorney Rachel Spivack failed to provide evidence that Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner showed hostility toward her religion. The appeals court found that a jury must resolve factual disputes concerning whether the vaccine mandate was both neutral and generally applicable, and if anti-religious hostility tainted the office’s treatment of religious exemptions. The Third Circuit’s decision comes as federal courts are still wading into issues concerning the extent faith-based objections to vaccine rules can override workplace policies designed to safeguard others. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently echoed the need for legal clarity on this issue, filing its first lawsuits against companies over their failure to grant employees religious exemptions to Covid-19 vaccine policies. Spivack, an Orthodox Jew, requested an exemption […]