POUGHKEEPSIE – City of Poughkeepsie Court Judge Frank Mora has been ordered to stay out of his courtroom because he is unvaccinated. The ruling was issued by Administrative Judge Anne Minihan, who oversees trial courts in New York’s Ninth Judicial District, on January 3, 2022.
Mora, who has been on the bench since 2011, had applied for a religious exemption to the COVID vaccination requirement and was recently denied. “My religious beliefs, and those of my family, do not endorse a government-mandated vaccine,” Judge Mora said.
Mora says that he has been presiding over his court calendar in a virtual format, since January 4, 2022, as ordered by Judge Minihan. Mora has been working out of the basement of his house since January, while attorneys, litigants, jurors, and spectators are allowed in the Poughkeepsie City Courtroom, without requiring a COVID vaccine.
Mora said that he has been having conversations with the court administration office regarding their decision and possible solutions. “I have been in full compliance with the ruling and have not been in the court since January 3, 2022,” Mora said. “I am disappointed that my religious beliefs are being ignored as a result of a mandate that doesn’t extend to other people in the courtroom,” said Mora. “The cases on my court calendar are still being handled even though I am presiding over a computer.”
State court officials did not respond to a request for comment from Mid-Hudson News regarding Judge Mora’s status.
The courtroom ban does not extend to city hall, where the court is located. Poughkeepsie Mayor Rob Rolison was in a meeting and unavailable to weigh in on the situation regarding one of the two city court judges.
Employees working in the New York State court system, more than 15,000 across the state, including clerks, secretaries, and armed court officers, are required to be vaccinated unless they have been granted a medical or religious exemption.
