A federal judge will now decide if a lawsuit challenging UMass Boston and UMass Lowell’s COVID vaccine mandates should be allowed to continue after two students argued the universities’ enforcement of the policy violates their rights. The schools are being sued by Hunter Harris, a UMass Lowell junior from Medway, and Cora Cluett, a UMass Boston senior from Quincy, who claim the vaccine mandates are unconstitutional and say they would be expelled from school if they declined to get vaccinated. Cluett is additionally arguing that UMass Boston’s denial of her request for religious exemption from the vaccine violates her religious freedom. Lawyers representing the schools and the two students appeared virtually in U.S. District Court Thursday to argue whether the lawsuit should be dismissed. Casper ultimately did not rule on the schools’ motion to dismiss the case, nor did she rule on the students’ request for a preliminary injunction to halt the mandates. But Casper said she would be mindful of the timeline of the case as she made her decision — UMass Lowell’s fall semester begins Sept. 1, while UMass Boston’s begins Sept. 7. Both schools are requiring students to be fully vaccinated to access campus, with exceptions […]
