According to Deadline, a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge sided with ABC in a court case against actor Ingo Rademacher (Hawaii Five-O). The judge ruled that Rademacher’s refusal to get vaccinated while working on General Hospital was a result of health reasons rather than religious ones. Rademacher has played the character Jasper Jacks on General Hospital since 1996.
In 2021, Rademacher was removed from General Hospital because he did not get the COVID-19 vaccination. Rademacher began a civil-rights lawsuit against ABC in December of that year on constitutional grounds. ABC is owned by Disney, and, at the time, Disney’s vaccine mandate was one of the strictest of any Hollywood studio. Including Rademacher, three other members of the team were also let go because of the vaccine mandate. Steve Burt (The Young and The Restless), who plays Jason Morgan, was let go in November 2021. In June 2021, Jim Wahl and Timothy Wall, two members of the crew, sued ABC because of their termination on the basis of their refusal to get the COVID vaccine.
The law firm JW Howard Attorneys, LTD filed a complaint against ABC. “ABC’s actions are blatantly unlawful,” the complaint reads. “ABC does not have the authority to force a medical treatment to its employees against their will … These actions constitute religious discrimination and violate Mr. Rademacher’s rights under state and federal law.”
Rademacher also alleged that the real reason he was let go was because people objected to his pro-Trump political beliefs. “ABC had a duty to accommodate Ingo,” read the filing by Rademacher’s lawyers. “Instead, it put him through a sham process that was designed to fail, and which was meant to cover up the real reason for Ingo’s termination: his political views.”
A more detailed ruling is expected in the next few weeks from Judge Stephen Goorvitch. It is likely that the actor will appeal. But when contacted by Deadline, the actor had no comment.