A university professor who multiplied anti-vaccine publications on his social networks, including one that compared the shot to “crimes against humanity,” was expelled from the Order of Chemists for a year, a recent decision reveals.
“The respondent’s comments in his publications (…) lack moderation and objectivity and are inappropriate and dangerous to the public.”
This is the conclusion of the disciplinary board of the Order of Chemists of Quebec regarding Christian Linard in a February decision made public this spring.
Christian Linard is a professor in the Department of Chiropractic at the University of Quebec in Trois-Rivières (UQTR).
Before the pandemic, he published several posts on his social networks or on his blog with claims that are not supported by the scientific literature.
For example, some suggested that vaccines against measles, hepatitis B or meningitis would be useless or even harmful.
“Vaccines and crimes against humanity!” we could read on his Facebook page in March 2019.
Early in the pandemic, Mr. Linard sent his students an email claiming that “the mortality rate of COVID-19 is identical to (that of) seasonal flu,” which is not true.
Guilty
In court, an expert in immunology dissected his publications and concluded that they were not ‘accurate’ or could ‘mislead the public’.
Mr Linard was found guilty of eleven disciplinary charges in July 2023.
The ex-chemist will have to pay a fine of $8,500, in addition to $2,500 in expert fees, the sanction decision last February concluded.
Mr Linard will also be removed from the order for a period of one year. Since he has not been a member since 2022, the decision does not specify whether the temporary termination already applies or whether it would come into effect in the event of his re-registration to the order.
Not a “simple citizen”
Given “his many years of experience and his fame”, Mr Linard is not a “simple 69-year-old citizen”, the disciplinary board recalled in its decision. “If he publishes, the chance that the accuracy of his words will be considered proven increases tenfold.”
In addition, the board believes that he has a ‘medium to high’ risk of recidivism. He shows “no evidence of awareness” or “attention to his influence on the public,” the council wrote.
In 2022, Mr Linard first tried to have the disciplinary complaint against him dismissed by claiming there had been an “abuse of process by intimidation”.
He then had three experts testify, including two professors who were sanctioned by their universities for their comments. His request, which attempted to prove the presence of “general censorship” in Quebec, was rejected.
Christian Linard was contacted by email and did not respond to the request Newspaper.
For its part, UQTR says it has taken note of the council’s decision and confirms that Mr. Linard is still a professor. The university’s website states that he will teach the course Laboratory diagnosis II in the fall of 2024.