News, Arts and Culture from WFIU Public Radio and WTIU Public Television
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Attorneys For Students Suing IU Appeal To Supreme Court

Attorneys for the eight IU students suing over its COVID-19 vaccine mandate are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to prevent IU from enforcing the mandate during appeal of the case. 

Upholding a lower court ruling, a federal appeals court in Chicago ruled earlier this week that IU could require students and employees to get vaccinated or face expulsion or termination. 

READ MORE: Federal Judge Denies Preliminary Injunction Against IU Vaccine Mandate

But James Bopp Jr., representing the students, filed an emergency application Friday for a writ of injunction with the Supreme Court. 

The students claim the mandate violates their constitutional rights by forcing them to receive unwanted medical treatment.   

“Continuing our fight against this unconstitutional mandate is necessary to guarantee that IU students receive the fair due process they’re owed by a public university,” Bopp said in a press release announcing the filing. “An admitted IU student’s right to attend IU cannot be conditioned on the student waiving their rights to bodily integrity and autonomy and to consent to medical treatment like IU has done here.” 

Tags
Patrick Beane spent three decades as a journalist at The Herald-Times in Bloomington before joining the staff at WFIU/WTIU News. He began his career at the newspaper after graduating from Indiana University in 1987 and was the sports editor from 2010-2020. His duties at the paper included writing, copy editing, page design and managing the sports department.