By Emry Dinman
The Spokesman-Review
SPOKANE, Wash. — Firefighters and supporters filled the front row of the Spokane City Council chambers Wednesday night, arguing the council should not approve more money to fight a lawsuit claiming dozens of firefighters were wrongfully fired for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
“Before you vote, I ask you to consider whether this funding serves the citizens of Spokane or simply finances more delay, more litigation, and more religious discrimination,” said Tim Archer, a 2023 mayoral candidate and one of the fired firefighters.
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The council voted 6-1 to approve another $200,000 fighting the case, bringing total costs to $885,000, with Councilman Michael Cathcart the sole “no” vote.
“My view at the time was that we could have made accommodation for these city employees, as other jurisdictions did,” Cathcart wrote in a May text when the council last approved additional legal defense funds for the case.
“It was a difficult circumstance, but at some point we have to weigh the cost of this litigation, the public’s interest in moving forward, and the fact that these were our employees,” he continued at the time.
More than two dozen firefighters sued Spokane, Woodward and others in 2022 for wrongful termination after they were fired for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine, arguing the mandate issued by then-Gov. Jay Inslee infringed on their freedom of religion.
A federal judge initially dismissed the firefighters’ claims, but that decision was reversed by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which found the city had undermined its case by filling gaps created by the firings with firefighters from neighboring departments that allowed religious exemptions to the vaccine mandate.
The case is scheduled for trial next March.
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