Anti-Vaxers Seek $6 Million Each For Damages Over Boston Mandate

BOSTON — A group of 16 people has filed an amended lawsuit in federal court seeking $6 million a pop in damages from the City of Boston over the city's former indoor COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

The group claims the mandate violated their constitutional rights, and say the Boston Public Health Commission, which is listed as the defendant, is unconstitutional. The City of Boston, Mayor Michell Wu, and the Boston Public Health Commission's Executive Director Dr. Bisola Ojikutu are also listed as defendants in the lawsuit.

The original lawsuit designed to block the city's vaccine mandate was filed hours before city officials lifted it, and weeks before the mask mandate was dropped, Universal Hub reported.

On Monday, the group of unvaccinated individuals filed the amended complaint in Massachusetts District Court because they claim "injunctive relief is no longer available."

The original vaccine mandate put in place on Jan. 15 by Wu barred unvaccinated individuals from entering most public indoor spaces in the city. The idea behind the "B Together" initiative was to help drive rapidly increasing COVID-19 case numbers down.

One month later, Wu dropped the vaccine mandate as numbers came down and less than 95 percent of ICU beds were occupied.

Each person is seeking $1 million in compensatory damages and another $5 million in punitive damages while covering the cost of their attorney and legal fees.

The group claims they suffered anxiety, humiliation, embarrassment, and "mental anguish" over being denied entry to certain places throughout the city for the one-month period. The order hindered some of them from retaining employment, the complaint says.

Sergeant Shana Cottone, of Norfolk, and a 14-year veteran of the Boston Police Department is one of the front-running members of the group, claiming she suffered "severe emotional distress" due to incidents involving her trying to enter two Boston pizza shops on Jan. 15 without a mask or proof of vaccination.

At this point, Cottone had already been placed on administrative leave as the result of an internal investigation, the Boston Herald first reported. While police were called to the pizza shops, Cottone claims she could not be vaccinated due to religious reasons, but refused to elaborate on those beliefs.

When asked for a comment on those allegations, Cottone instead referred reporters to an interview she recorded with WRKO radio host Jeff Kuhner in January.

Cottone instead launched a lawsuit claiming she has "a medical issue pertaining to blood sugar levels and frequently must have immediate access to food."

"It was reported to Cottone that Boston Police are attempting to fire her because of the incidents mentioned," the lawsuit states.

Several other plaintiffs in the lawsuit list similar experiences due to the mandate in the court filing. One group member claims she was "no longer able to dine out with her husband at their weekly 'night out' spot at a local Dorchester restaurant but would have to travel outside Boston to dine out," the lawsuit reads.

Patch reached out to Cottone and the Mayor's office for comment and will update when we hear back.

Judge Angel Kelley was assigned the lawsuit last month.