Judge: Gov. Lee's mask opt-out can endanger disabled kids

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A federal judge has indefinitely blocked Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee from allowing parents to opt out of school mask requirements in Shelby County, saying Friday that evidence shows Lee's order prevents children with health problems from safely going to school during the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. District Judge Sheryl Lipman issued the preliminary injunction after parents of students with health conditions argued that the Republican governor's executive order endangered their children and hurt their ability to attend in-person classes by allowing others to opt-out of a mask mandate.

Lipman had already issued a temporary restraining order on Sept. 3 stopping schools from allowing parents to opt-out. It was set to expire Friday. The preliminary injunction continues blocking Lee’s order as the federal lawsuit proceeds.

“Plaintiffs offered sufficient evidence at this stage to demonstrate that the Executive Order interferes with Plaintiffs’ ability to safely access their schools," the judge wrote Friday.

“It is that unmasked presence that creates the danger to these Plaintiffs," she wrote.

The injunction applies to all seven public school districts in Shelby County, which began classes Aug. 9 under a universal mask requirement issued by the Shelby County Health Department. Shelby County Schools includes Memphis and is Tennessee's largest school system, with 100,000 students. Six other districts serve the suburbs of Arlington, Bartlett, Collierville, Germantown, Lakeland and Millington.

The parents’ lawsuit claims Lee’s order violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits the exclusion of students with disabilities from public educational programs and activities. Children with certain disabilities are more vulnerable to serious illness or...