A judge has dismissed a retaliation claim that was the only remaining cause of action in a lawsuit filed by one current Beverly Hills firefighter and a former member of the department who both challenged the city’s decisions in enforcing Los Angeles County’s health care worker COVID-19 vaccination mandate.
Plaintiffs Josh Sattley, who was fired for not getting vaccinated, and Ettore Berardinelli Jr., who was granted a religious exemption and is still with the department, sued the city of Beverly Hills, Los Angeles County, and Beverly Hills City Councilman John A. Mirisch.
On Sept. 19, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Barbara M. Scheper granted the city’s motion to dismiss Sattley’s retaliation claim, the remaining cause of action in the complaint that she had pared in a separate ruling last December.
In her latest ruling, the judge found that Sattley had not exhausted his internal city grievance options before suing and that he did not provide evidence to support his claim that his termination was a result of his social media criticism of the city’s policies.
Sattley’s attorneys argued in their court documents that their client’s social media posts challenging the city’s COVID policies were “protected activity” because the messages involved some degree of opposition to or protest against employer conduct or practices that he believed were unlawful.
In her earlier ruling, the judge dismissed Berardinelli’s and Sattley’s claims against the city for declaratory relief and both religious and disability discrimination.
“Here, plaintiffs have failed to allege the necessary facts regarding Sattley’s conflicting belief with mandatory COVID vaccination,” Scheper wrote.
The judge previously dismissed the county and Mirisch as defendants.
Dr. Muntu Davis, the county’s health officer, issued an order in August 2021 requiring all health care workers in Los Angeles County to get a COVID-19 vaccine, including firefighters. While some employers have accommodated requests for religious and medical exemptions, Beverly Hills insisted on universal vaccination, according to the lawsuit.
“It subjected firefighters who requested a religious exemption, like Mr. Sattley and Mr. Berardinelli, to cross-examination designed to undermine their credibility and pressure them, under the threat of prosecution, to give up their religious freedom and get the shot,” the lawsuit stated.
Although Berardinelli received a religious exemption that was extended in the fall of 2021, he has been constantly reviewed by the city and faced retaliation, including being reassigned to a job with fewer calls, the lawsuit alleged. Berardinelli recovered from a COVID-19 infection and believes he has natural immunity, according to the lawsuit.
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