The Supreme Court of Virginia on Monday rejected on procedural grounds a petition from parents seeking to invalidate Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s executive order prohibiting school systems from enforcing mask mandates in the classroom.
Youngkin and Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares are battling in court on multiple fronts to defend the executive order. And while Youngkin and Miyares are claiming the decision is a victory for parental rights – the ruling is far from definitive.
In their lawsuit, the 13 parents claimed Youngkin overstepped his bounds with his executive order that allowed parents to decide if their child would wear a mask in school or not.
The Supreme Court of Virginia threw out that lawsuit, citing technicalities. The court basically said the case asked for solutions the justices can’t provide.
Monday’s ruling followed on the heels of a ruling Friday by Arlington Circuit Court Judge Louise DiMatteo who ruled in favor of seven school boards that filed a lawsuit challenging the governor’s order, one of the first actions Youngkin took after his inauguration on January 15.
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares released the following statement:
“Today, the Supreme Court of Virginia rejected a challenge out of the City of Chesapeake to Governor Youngkin’s Executive Order Number 2. The Governor and I are pleased with today’s ruling. At the beginning of this pandemic, Governor Northam used his broad emergency powers to close places of worship, private businesses, and schools and impose a statewide mask mandate. Nearly two years later, we have better risk mitigation strategies and vaccines, and we know much more about the efficacy of requiring children to wear masks all day. We agree with the Court’s decision and will continue to defend the Executive Order. This is a victory for Virginia families.”
But Kevin Martingayle, a lawyer who filed the petition on behalf of the Chesapeake parents, said the ruling is only a procedural defeat, and noted language in the court’s opinion suggesting that local school boards have “a degree of discretion” under state law on whether to impose mandates.
“This is far from over,” Martingayle said in a statement, according to the Associated Press.
