A Chicago judge who revoked a mother’s custody of her 11-year-old son until she got vaccinated has reversed his decision.
Rebecca Firlit, a 39-year-old desk clerk, was surprised when Cook County Judge James Shapiro asked about her vaccination status during a virtual child support hearing with her ex-husband.
Firlit explained that she had “adverse reactions in the past and was advised not to get vaccinated by her doctor. It poses a risk.”
But Judge Shapiro revoked Firlit’s custody of her 11-year-old son until she got the vaccine.
READ ALSO: Judge Revokes Custody for Mother Who Said She Was Unvaccinated
Firlit’s attorney, Annette Fernholz, immediately appealed the order, arguing that Shapiro overstepped his authority as a judge.
“In this case you have a judge, without any matter before him regarding the parenting time with the child deciding ‘Oh, you’re not vaccinated. You don’t get to see your child until you are vaccinated.’ That kind of exceeds his jurisdiction,” Fernholz told Fox 32 Chicago.
“You have to understand the father did not even bring this issue before the court. So it’s the judge on his own and making this decision that you can’t see your child until you’re vaccinated,” she added.
Fernholz said Judge Shapiro reversed his order on Monday.
“Judge Shapiro just issued an order vacating portions of his prior order of August 11th so Rebecca Firlit can see her son again,” Fernholz told Fox 32.
She said the judge likely reversed his decision following “media outcry”.
“I think there’s been a lot of media outcry. The divorce bar here in Illinois has been responding when they saw it on the news,” Fernholz said.
Another attorney representing Firlit’s son said Firlit became “volatile” during the child support hearing, and her behavior may have influenced the judge.
But Firlit denied doing anything to endanger her child. “It definitely was not a reason to take my child away from me,” she said.
