Liberty Counsel returned to federal court March 10 in the Navy SEAL 1 v. Austin case to defend the preliminary injunction Judge Steven Merryday granted for two plaintiffs from the military shot mandate. The Department of Defense (DOD) asked the judge to set aside his injunction while the case is on appeal.
During the all-day hearing, Liberty Counsel presented compelling testimony from the Navy Commander of a surface warship and three military flight surgeons, Lt. Col. Peter Chambers, Lt. Col. Teresa Long and Col. (Ret.) Stewart Tankersley, M.D. In contrast, the DOD declined to present witnesses.
Navy Commander: On February 2, Judge Merryday issued a temporary restraining order blocking the Navy from punishing the Commander because of his vaccination status. Judge Merryday ruled the Navy violated the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).
When the court ordered the Commodore to comply with the law, he filed an affidavit saying he had “lost confidence” in the Commander because the Commander had not taken the COVID shots. Then after Judge Merryday entered a preliminary injunction, the DOD and the Navy filed a motion asking the judge to set aside his injunction, saying due to “lost confidence” in the Commander, his ship could not deploy.
At the time, the DOD said the ship could not be deployed, the Commander was far out to sea testing the ship and training the crew. While many Commanders fail to complete these operations timely, the Commander completed the mission early and the ship deemed “safe and ready.”
In a dramatic moment, the Commander said he should not have to be there in court defending religious freedom. “Generals and admirals should be here saying what I am saying today to uphold religious freedom. Our religious freedoms are being attacked.”
Dr. Pete Chambers: A Purple Heart recipient, Dr. Chambers is in the Texas National Guard and defends the southern border where 10,000-20,000 illegal immigrants flood through every week. “My job is to keep our soldiers safe,” Chambers said.
After nearly 29 years in the military, Chambers planned on retiring in 2023 with 40 years of service. But an adverse reaction to the Moderna shot derailed his plans. Trusting the military that the shots are “safe and effective,” and not knowing at the time that aborted fetal cells were used in the testing and/or development, he took the shot. He now suffers from demyelination, a condition affecting the central nervous system caused by the injection.
After his Moderna injury, Dr. Chambers met Lt. Col. Long. They reviewed the DOD’s Defense Medical Epidemiology Database (DMED), the military equivalent to the federal government’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), where he discovered other military members also developed a demyelination disease after the COVID shots.
As a military flight surgeon and one of only six Green Beret surgeons, Chambers was ordered that his job was to get soldiers vaccinated. He was told that religious exemptions would be denied. The instruction about religious exemptions ended with this: “Soldiers will try. Soldiers will fail.”
He testified that many soldiers were being injured by the COVID shots. As a doctor, he said, “This is not normal.”
Chambers also testified that the shots were not effective in preventing infection. About 75-80% of soldiers getting infected were “double vaxxed” compared to only about 15% of soldiers who had not received the shots.
Dr. Theresa Long: A flight surgeon who also holds a master’s degree in Public Health, Dr. Long is specially trained in the DMED. The night before the hearing, Dr. Long was contacted and told by high-level command to not discuss her findings regarding military medical data, although the findings are paramount to ensuring best practices in protecting the health and readiness of the force. Earlier, after she tried to get her superiors to address the findings, she describes “fearing for her life and for the safety of my children.”
When Liberty Counsel’s Mat Staver asked her a question about the DMED, she said, “I have been ordered not to answer that question.” Judge Merryday immediately asked, “Ordered by who?” She then testified about what happened the night before the hearing.
Staver then asked Dr. Long if the information the military ordered her not to testify to was relevant and important to the court and the public. She said, “Yes.” Staver then asked, “Why?”
Dr. Long paused, held back tears, looked at the judge and said, “I have so many soldiers being destroyed by this vaccine. Not a single member of my senior command has discussed my concerns with me … I have nothing to gain and everything to lose by talking about it. I’m OK with that because I am watching people get absolutely destroyed.”
Dr. Long said she is inundated morning, noon and night regarding people who have been injured by taking the COVID shots. Those injured are “predominantly pilots, and pilots have to meet one of the highest fitness standards.”
She also said she is aware of at least two people who committed suicide under pressure to get the shots and threat of punishment for refusal.
Dr. Long also testified that based on the VAERS database, deaths of military members from the vaccines exceed deaths from COVID itself.
Soldiers are in despair over the pressure to get the vaccine and are experiencing suicidal ideation. Morale is tanking in the military, and current policies undermine “good order and discipline.”
Dr. Stewart Tankersley: A flight surgeon who retired in September 2021 at the rank of Colonel, Tankersley has personally treated over 200 COVID patients with no fatalities. The group of doctors with whom he is associated has treated over 18,000 with deaths from COVID in the single digits.
“I’ve never seen anything like this in the military or civilian world, the lack of dialogue, the suppression of scientific dialogue.” Tankersley said on the stand.
Dr. Tankersley explained one of several reasons there are so many injuries from the COVID shots. The mRNA vaccines require a Lipid Nanoparticle (LNP) as a delivery mechanism because the RNA quickly degrades without being encased in the LNP. The combination bypasses the natural immune system and creates inflammation that can inhibit the body’s innate immunity.
Dr. Tankersley testified that the shots are neither safe nor effective. He also testified that there are safe and effective treatments for COVID, including nasal rinsing and ivermectin.
The DOD’s untenable position is that there is only one way to combat COVID and ensure military readiness—to permanently separate from the military anyone who is not “vaccinated” for COVID.
Liberty Counsel argued the COVID shots are neither safe nor effective, are injuring and killing service members, and that the mandate is undermining military readiness and harming morale. Liberty Counsel also argued that there are safe and effective means of treating COVID and preserving military readiness.
Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel Mat Staver said: “I am honored to serve the brave men and women of the military. I am dismayed by the abuse and propaganda forced upon them from the White House and the Department of Defense. The truth will prevail, and freedom will win.”
