Mother jailed for refusing to vaccinate her nine-year-old son for religious reasons
A mother has been jailed for seven days for refusing to vaccinate her nine-year-old son on religious grounds.
Rebecca Bredow, from Ferndale, Michigan, violated an agreement to have the vaccinations done after a court ordered her to get them done in October 2016.
Her ex-husband, James Horne, wanted their son to be vaccinated but Bredow is the primary carer.
Bredow, 40, told Oakland County Judge Karen McDonald that immunising her child went against her religious beliefs.
She added that she was a “passionate mother who cares deeply about her children, their health and their well-being” but takes “full responsibility” for her actions.
The mum-of-two told the court: “I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”
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Judge McDonald said the boy has two parents and “dad gets a say”.
Mr Horne’s lawyer said neither parents practiced any religious beliefs and that the objection was “a convenient lie.”
Judge McDonald sentenced Bredow to a week in jail for contempt of court and placed the boy in temporary custody of his dad.