Preliminary injunction likely against Youngkin Virginia mask order, attorney says

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin's executive order took effect Monday, allowing public schools to choose whether to enforce a COVID-19 mask mandate among students, despite several districts filing litigation challenging the order.

Seven school districts sued to block the order on Monday, while an additional filing last week by 13 parents of students from Chesapeake City Public Schools is slated to be heard by the state's Supreme Court. The districts accused Youngkin of violating a state law requiring school boards to implement guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention "to the maximum extent practicable."

Following the initial lawsuit, Attorney General Jason Miyares filed a motion to the state Supreme Court to dismiss the case against Executive Order No. 2, which argues: "Recent government orders requiring virtually every child in Virginia wear masks virtually every moment they are in school have proven ineffective and impractical."

Miyares's office said it expected the state Supreme Court to take up the school mask debate on Monday, though no orders have been issued as of Tuesday. A preliminary injunction over the case will likely be made in a matter of days, Charlottesville trial attorney Scott Goodman told the Washington Examiner.