Judge Rules NYC Firefighter Injured by COVID Vaccine Not Entitled to Compensation
Former New York City firefighter O’Brian Pastrana, who developed permanent heart damage after a mandated COVID-19 shot, will receive no compensation for his injury, according to a recent ruling by U.S. District Judge Brian M. Cogan. Despite experiencing a severe anaphylactic reaction after the first dose, Pastrana was denied a medical exemption and forced to take a second dose to keep his job — a decision that led to debilitating myocarditis and early retirement.
In his ruling, Cogan claimed that none of Pastrana’s fundamental rights were violated and stated, “Pastrana always had a choice between receiving the vaccine and keeping his job.” The judge argued that the city wasn’t liable because Pastrana was free to seek other employment or decline the second shot, even if it meant sacrificing his career and livelihood.
The court granted summary judgment to the city, bypassing a trial and effectively siding with the FDNY’s policy of requiring full vaccination despite medical complications. Pastrana now receives only 50% of his salary through a disability pension and says he’s physically unable to work, while his family faces foreclosure and mounting bills.
Pastrana’s attorneys, Christina Martinez and Sujata Gibson, strongly criticized the ruling. Martinez argued the court ignored the unconstitutional conditions doctrine, which prohibits the government from forcing someone to waive their constitutional rights — such as bodily autonomy — to keep a public job. “He didn’t just lose his job. He lost his health,” Martinez said.
Gibson added, “So the question is, can an employer require you to do something that they understand could kill or harm you… and not compensate you? This court said yes.”
Pastrana’s medical crisis began on October 29, 2021, after his first vaccine dose triggered a severe allergic reaction, sending him to the ER multiple times. Although an FDNY doctor acknowledged the reaction was vaccine-related, the city refused a medical exemption unless he could provide an allergy test. But the test couldn’t be safely administered while he was on antihistamines.
Under financial and professional pressure, Pastrana complied and took the second dose on November 23, 2021, leading to heart complications. He was subsequently forced into early retirement and now struggles to support his wife and children. “My life has been slowly but surely deteriorating,” he said. “Foreclosure seems inevitable.”
Cogan’s ruling leaned heavily on the 1905 Jacobson v. Massachusetts case, which allowed for vaccine mandates but also emphasized the necessity of adequate medical exemptions. Gibson noted the court’s decision disregards that precedent and ignores the Nuremberg Code’s emphasis on informed medical consent.
“In Jacobson, the court said it would be ‘cruel and inhuman in the last degree’ to force someone to take a medical intervention that could harm them,” Gibson argued. “Now we’re being told you can lose your entire career — your constitutionally protected livelihood — and still have no recourse.”
The court concluded that it was rational for the FDNY to require an allergy test and suggested the city had the right to deny an exemption even if one was presented, citing public health concerns. “The needs of the community can outweigh the desire for an exception for one individual,” Cogan wrote.
Gibson responded bluntly: “At what point does this not become like the Hunger Games?”
DailyClout.IO will continue to cover this story. Source article posted here.
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