CHARLESTON, W. Va. – With school starting back up across West Virginia, the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia (ACLU-WV) and Mountain State Justice (MSJ) are refiling their lawsuit against state education officials and requesting a temporary restraining order to immediately halt enforcement of Gov. Patrick Morrisey's executive order on vaccine exemptions.
On Friday, August 15, 2025, the organizations asked the court for emergency relief to protect West Virginia students as the new school year begins, after their previous lawsuit was dismissed on technical grounds in July.
"Time is running out to protect West Virginia's schoolchildren from a dangerous and unconstitutional policy," said ACLU-WV Legal Director Aubrey Sparks. “While our previous case was dismissed on procedural grounds, the core of this issue is clear: What the state is doing violates the law and the West Virginia Constitution. We're asking the court to act immediately before more children are put at risk."
The refiled lawsuit challenges Governor Morrisey's attempt to unilaterally create philosophical exemptions to West Virginia's vaccine requirements, directly contradicting the Legislature's clear rejection of such exemptions during the 2025 session. The state's laws require students to be vaccinated for chickenpox, hepatitis-b, measles, meningitis, mumps, diphtheria, polio, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough.
"This executive order represents a fundamental abuse of power that threatens both public health and our constitutional system," Sparks continued. "The governor is attempting to single-handedly overturn vaccine protections that the Legislature deliberately chose to keep in place. That's not how our government works."
The emergency request for a temporary restraining order emphasizes the urgent timing as students return to classrooms across the state without the protection of established vaccine requirements.
The lawsuit is brought on behalf of two West Virginia parents whose children face heightened risks: Dr. Joshua Hess in Cabell County and Marisa Jackson in Kanawha County.
Jackson, who successfully advocated in the Legislature against adding non-medical exemptions to protect her immunocompromised child, now faces the very policy she fought against being imposed through executive action.
Dr. Hess, a pediatric hematologist and oncologist at Marshall Health's Cabell Huntington Hospital, treats immunocompromised children who are particularly vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases. "Every day I see children whose immune systems can't protect them from diseases that vaccines prevent in healthy kids. When vaccination rates drop, these vulnerable children pay the price," Hess said. Hess is also the parent of an immunocompromised child.
"This isn't just about policy—it's about protecting real children who will be sitting in classrooms next week," said Sarah Brown, MSJ Executive Director. "Governor Morrisey is gambling with children's lives to score political points. We've seen what happens in other states when vaccine requirements are weakened, and we won't let that happen here in West Virginia."
ACLU-WV is requesting that the court issue a temporary restraining order immediately to prevent enforcement of the governor's executive order while the case proceeds, ensuring that West Virginia's established vaccine requirements remain in effect for the current school year.
The refiled lawsuit will be submitted to Kanawha County Circuit Court, seeking both emergency relief and a permanent injunction against the executive order.