Legal Fight Far From Over Despite Fort Worth ISD Mask Mandate Going Into Effect Sept.13
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Starting tomorrow, Fort Worth ISD will require all employees, students, parents and visitors to wear a face mask while inside any district building.
The requirement is in place for now, but the legal fight against it is far from over.
From the boardroom to the courtroom, Fort Worth parents have been weighing in on the district's potential mask mandate since the new school year began. The new rules are officially going into effect tomorrow, more than two weeks after the Board of Education approved the resolution.
It's been held up by a lawsuit from four Fort Worth ISD parents.
"Let the parents decide if they want their child to wear a mask or not," said Jennifer Treger, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit against FWISD.
Their attorney filed a new motion, an emergency request for an appeals court to step in, late Friday night.
"In this case, the rights of the parties of appeal were people that are being damaged, the children that are being damaged by the abusive behavior by zealous teachers who feel like they're here to tell us how we're supposed to be good parents," said Warren Norred, the attorney representing the parents.
None of them plan to make their children comply with the new mask requirement when they go to school tomorrow.
"They may or may not wear masks depending on how they feel, if they feel pressured," said Todd Daniel. "I'd prefer they don't, but it's up to them."
"My daughter will not be wearing a mask, as are most of her friends," Kerri Rehmeyer, another plaintiff, said. "They're not going to wear them. I mean we consider it to be legal and unenforceable."
It's not clear whether district plans to take any disciplinary action against students or staff members who refuse to wear one.
"I think that we're going to see a lot of uneven treatment tomorrow, unless of course the Court of Appeals comes out first thing in the morning and says, that's not going to work," Norred said.
The new policy requires masks to be worn at all times inside FWISD buildings, absent a medical exemption. People can decide for themselves whether to wear masks at outdoor activities and events.
The superintendent is supposed to review the need for this mandate on a monthly basis.
