Rebecca
Bredow, of the Detroit area, has has been sentenced to seven days in
jail for refusing to bring her child's vaccinations up to date.
Bredow
appeared at a hearing on Wednesday morning at the Oakland County
Circuit Court where Judge Karen McDonald sentenced her for contempt of
court after Bredow refused to comply with court orders for her to allow
her son to receive all his missing vaccinations within one week.
The
mother of two told the judge that she takes "full responsibility" for
her actions and that vaccinations go against her beliefs.
In
an interview with ABC News last week, Bredow said that she would
"absolutely" rather go to jail than allow her 9-year-old son to receive
the swath of vaccinations in one week.
"I
would rather go to jail for standing up for what I believe in than
vaccinating my child," Bredow told ABC News, adding that she believes
the decision to vaccinate a child is a "personal choice."
Bredow
is the primary caregiver for the boy, though she shares legal custody
with his father, her ex-husband Jason Horne. Bredow said that when her
son was much younger, she and Horne originally agreed to space out
vaccinations for him. She said that she was most concerned about the
grouping of vaccinations.
Michigan mom says she could face jail time for not vaccinating her son
The state of Michigan allows parents to opt-out of certain vaccines for non-medical reasons. The American Academy of Pediatrics emphasizes the safety and importance of vaccines and recommends a schedule of when to provide them.
Last
week, the court ordered Bredow to bring the boy's vaccinations up to
date according to the recommended schedule and said she had one week to
comply.
"Now
I have four-and-a-half business days ... to fully vaccinate, they want
me to bring him up to the fullest extent medically allowed, which would
be up to eight vaccines, in one dose," Bredow told ABC News. "This is
supposed to be done before 9 a.m. on Wednesday."
"God forbid if he were to be injured by a vaccine," she continued. "I would have to take care of him."
The
divorced parents have been embroiled in a legal battle over several
matters, according to Horne's attorney Benton G. Richardson, the dispute
over vaccinations for their son is one among them.
Horne
told the courts he now wants the boy to receive all of the vaccinations
recommended by his age and the court ruled in his favor.
Court
documents obtained by ABC News state that Bredow was first asked to
have the immunizations provided to her son in November 2016.
While
Bredow serves her seven-day prison sentence, the child will be in the
care of Horne. Bredow will be back in court next week at a time to be
determined.
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