With COVID, and the reaction to COVID by state and society, everything changed overnight. Panic led to unprecedented mandates and restrictions on daily life. First, lockdown. Then, vaccine frenzy.

Frenzy is the accurate term. The COVID injections were brought to market with emergency-use authorization, granted in a fear-saturated environment and through the claim that there were no treatments. Anyone who accepted the shot had to sign a waiver, acknowledging they were participating in a medical trial and releasing the drug companies from liability.  

This is what passed for informed consent. 

There was no way of knowing what complications might arise thanks to the lack of long-term safety studies and no list of the ingredients contained in the shots, but that didn’t stop Gray TV from mandating the shot the shot authorized only for experimental use to its employees, putting me squarely in the firing line when they made the announcement on August 16, 2021. 

One week later, the FDA seemingly gave Gray legal cover for the move when it approved Comirnaty for use even though Comirnaty wasn’t available anywhere in the USA. That letter was seen as a green light for a mandate and led to even more corporations and companies following suit with a mandate.

I have strong religious objections to the COVID shot as a practicing Catholic, so I filed a request for a religious accommodation  under Gray TV’s rules on September 9. It was summarily  denied just two days later, and I was fired on September 15 without the discussion promised in the corporation’s employee handbook  or on the religious accommodation form itself. The stated reason for my termination was failure to follow company policy..

To call this devastating is to understate it. Every day I hear from people who are upset about what happened to me, telling me how much they miss seeing me do the sports every night on TV. Knowing how much my work was valued means more to me than I can express. To everyone who has given me encouragement, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Now I ask you to help me in my quest to bring to account one of the multi-billion-dollar corporations who played fast and loose with the law, and begin what should become days of reckoning for the violators of the most basic of human rights, bodily autonomy, and the right to religious freedom.

The dignity of the individual and the rights of the common man are the very bedrock of the laws of this country. If the powerful are allowed to openly flout the law, break validly written statutes and trample on the natural rights given to us by God and safeguarded in the Constitution, what protections remain for the people?

It’s time for us to take a stand. Let’s balance the scales of justice, and open the way for others who are seeking to right the wrongs done to them. I can only do it with your help. Again, you can click the button to go to my GiveSendGo page. Any support will be greatly appreciated.
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CASE TIMELINE

AUGUST 2021

  • 8/6/21: GRAY announces all new hires must be “fully vaccinated.” Current employees are encouraged to vaccinate, but assured they are not subject to the “new hire rule.” 
  •  8/16/21: Gray changes policy. All current employees are notified in writing that they must receive one of the experimental COVID shots or lose their job. The email announcing this policy outlines procedures for filing for an exemption  or accommodation (medical or religious). 
  •  8/23/21: The FDA announces that Pfizer’s “Comirnaty” has been approved for distribution. Comirnaty is not yet in production, leading the FDA to clear Pfizer/Biotech to continue giving the experimental shot but with EUA restrictions. 
  • 8/25/21: Dave sends first email to GRAY HR requesting to speak with a representative about the COVID shot. 
  • 8/26/21: Dave receives HR response requesting that he email his questions. A prompt reply is promised. 
  • 8/26-27/21: GRAY hosts 4pm ZOOM Q&A calls on consecutive days, featuring medical professionals discussing the COVID shots. The email announcing the Q&A asks that all questions be submitted beforehand. A recording of the event is also promised, since it falls during normal broadcast work time for many employees, including Dave. No recording was ever made available to the best of Dave’s knowledge.

SEPTEMBER 2021

  • 9/6/2021: GRAY HR sends Dave an email with a religious accommodation form. 
  • 9/9/21: Dave promptly returns his form via email to GRAY HR. 
  • 9/11/21: GRAY returns Dave’s accommodation form with a rejection stating there is “no reasonable accommodation that can be made” due to the nature of Dave’s work in broadcast journalism. The rejection notification is sent a 1:40pm on SATURDAY while Dave is covering UGA football in Athens, GA. 
  • 9/12/21: Dave is double-checks the rejection email, and is further notified that he is considered a supervisor, thus making him eligible for immediate termination if he does not comply.  
  •  9/13/21: Dave sends HR an email seeking more information. He requests answers to what company policy is if he experiences an adverse reaction, the ethical issues with the vaccines development, etc. He never receives a reply. 
  • 9/17/21: Dave hires the Hipes Law Firm as legal representation.

 

OCTOBER 2021- JANUARY 2023

  • 10/6/21: After GRAY TV is notified of Dave’s intention to hire a lawyer, they offer a severance deal. In return Dave would have to cease all legal action.

  • 10/27/21: Dave responds to severance offer with a counter that would amend the injustice done. Among his requests was a reinstatement to his old job, reinstatement of his health insurance, back pay remuneration, and fair accommodation for his exemption from the vaccine mandate. GRAY rejects his requests outright.

  • 11/14/21: The Georgia Department of Labor claim Dave is ineligible for unemployment, since he was fired for “not following procedures.”

  • 11/22/21: A religious discrimination claim against. Gray is filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

  • 12/6/21: Dave files an appeal with the Georgia Department of Labor concerning their claim that he is ineligible  for unemployment benefits.

  • 1/6/22: Department of Labor acknowledges appeal via e-mail, stating that the Appeals Tribunal will hear the case at a later date. No date was set, and Dave has yet to receive a date for this hearing (as of 2/2/23).

  • 2/14/22: GRAY responds to EEOC filing with a position statement.

  • 4/21/22: Dave’s legal counsel is informed of the existence of GRAY’s position statement and is given until June 15 to respond.

  • 6/15/22: Response to Gray position statement is filed with EEOC.

  • 1/17/23: The EEOC grants right to sue. 

On January 17, 2023, the lawsuit against GRAY TV is filed in U.S. District Court in Atlanta.