Page:Cude v. State, 237 Ark. 927 (1964).pdf/5

] will not permit the children to be vaccinated. Then the question is whether they have the legal right to prevent vaccination. The answer is that they do not have such right.

There is no question that the laws of this State require parents to send to school their children between the ages of 7 and 15, inclusive. Ark. Stat. Ann. § 80-1502 (Repl. 1960) provides : "Every parent, guardian, or other person residing within the State of Arkansas and having in custody or charge any child or children between the ages of seven [7] and fifteen [15], (both inclusive) shall send such child or children to a public, private, or parochial school under such penalty for non-compliance with this section as hereinafter provided."

The school administrative authorities of the State of Arkansas have adopted a regulation requiring vaccination as follows : "No person shall be entered as a teacher, employee or pupil in a public or private school in this state without having first presented to the principal in charge or the proper authorities, a certificate from a licensed and competent physician of this State certifying that the said teacher, employee or pupil has been successfully vaccinated; or in lieu of a certificate of successful vaccination, a certificate certifying a recent vaccination done in a proper manner by a competent physician; or a certificate showing immunity from having had smallpox. . ." There is no question about the validity of this regulation. State v. Martin, 134 Ark. 420, 204 S. W. 622; Seubold v. Ft. Smith Special School Dist., 218 Ark. 560, 237 S. W. 2d 884.

It is clear that the law requires that the children attend school, and a valid regulation requires that they be vaccinated. The next question is: Are appellants, because of their religion, exempt from the law and the regulation requiring that the children be vaccinated so that they can go to school? It will be remembered that appellants do not object to the children going to school; it is the vaccination that is objectionable to them. But, according to a valid regulation, the children are not permitted to go to school without having been vaccinated.