An Arizona judge will hear arguments Wednesday over whether a Phoenix school district can require people to wear masks in defiance of a state law banning mask mandates in schools.
Teacher Douglas Hester filed a lawsuit Monday against the Phoenix Union High School District and its governing board, along with superintendent Chad Gestson, requesting that the court declare the district’s mask policy contrary to the law, according to the complaint. “No school district is above the law, and we are pleased to take action on behalf of this brave teacher to ensure government bodies follow state law,” Hester’s attorney, Alexander Kolodin, told CNN in an emailed statement Tuesday. The lawsuit comes as lagging vaccination rates and the spread of the more transmissible Delta variant sends Covid-19 cases surging again. Many experts fear what the recent surge in Covid-19 cases could mean for the new school year, and some officials are re-implementing mask mandates to add another layer of protection in communities with high levels of spread.
