<p>An Arlington County judge on Thursday sided with northern Virginia&#8217;s liberal school boards, and against Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, in an early battle over the school districts&#8217; refusal to abide by an Executive Order that would allow parents to exempt children from mask requirements in schools.</p>
<p>The order denied a temporary restraining order in favor of preserving the status quo while litigation proceeds &#8212; which, in northern Virginia, means school districts maintaining policies requiring universal masking.</p>
<p>A 2012 news <a href="https://www.insidenova.com/news/arlington/judicial-ranks-augmented-as-dimatteo-takes-the-bench/article_0ba8830a-0d06-53c6-aa0e-ca429f624db7.html">profile</a> of Judge Louise DiMatteo upon her appointment to the bench said that she is married to an Arlington Public Schools teacher named Michael Megargee. Wakefield High School&#8217;s staff <a href="https://wakefield.apsva.us/post/staff/dr-mike-megargee/">directory</a> lists him as a current science teacher. A message on a phone number listed for DiMatteo and Megargee, inquiring about whether the situation posed a conflict of interest, was not immediately returned.</p>
<p>In her ruling, DiMatteo wrote that in a state of emergency, governors can issue executive orders that are equal to laws&#8211;including the executive orders used by Youngkin&#8217;s Democratic predecessor Ralph Northam to require masks, and Youngkin&#8217;s EO 2, which undid that.</p>
<p>But a law passed in 2021 to require schools to finally re-open &#8212; backed mostly by Republicans who wanted to force northern Virginia&#8217;s schools to stop relying on virtual learning &#8212; also included language saying that the schools &#8220;shall&#8230; provide such in-person instruction in a manner in which it adheres, to the maximum extent practicable, to any currently applicable mitigation strategies&#8230; that have been provided by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.&#8221;</p>
<p>The CDC recommends masking in schools, although, as those who oppose mandatory masking have pointed out, the CDC also recommends many other coronavirus measures that school boards haven&#8217;t required. Nonetheless, that set up a situation where two equal orders contradicted each other, the judge said.</p>
<p>County school boards argued that they have essentially carte blanche to run schools as they see fit. But the judge noted that the situation is not so simple; clearly, they are constrained by some state rules. &#8220;It stands to reason, therefore, that the General Assembly would have a strong hand in regulating and issuing legislation affecting education in the Commonwealth,&#8221; DiMatteo wrote.</p>
<p>She wrote that Youngkin would not suffer &#8220;irreparable harm&#8221; if she did not unmask children now.</p>
<p>&#8220;Keeping rules in place that have been established over the school year helps children, families and staff understand how they may be impacted during the pandemic&#8230; During the time the case is pending there appears to be a benefit to keeping the current policies in place,&#8221; particularly because SB 1303 ends in August.</p>
<p>The Arlington case is not the only court challenge on masking in Virginia schools. A case brought by parents from Virginia Beach is before the Virginia Supreme Court. And Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares have requested to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/virginia-governor-joins-parents-lawsuit-against-loudoun-schools-over-masks">join</a>, as plaintiffs, a case brought by parents against Loudoun County Public Schools.</p>
<p>Miyares has said that if a court doesn&#8217;t find that an executive order can unmask children, then they will seek a &#8220;legislative fix.&#8221;</p>
<p>Chap Petersen, a moderate Democrat who joined with Republicans to force school re-opening last year, demanded that Fairfax County Public Schools issue &#8220;a final deadline (e.g. Valentine’s Day). They should announce that immediately. The forced masking policy is going to end very soon, i.e. in a few weeks. Otherwise, the General Assembly will again step in. IT IS NOT AN ACCEPTABLE LONG-TERM SOLUTION.”</p>
<p>With the House of Delegates in Republican control and the Senate narrowly in Democrats&#8217; favor, such a bill could pass with Petersen&#8217;s support.</p>
<p>However, there could be procedural hurdles. Before getting to a floor vote, the bill would have to get out of committee, where Democrats have a larger advantage.</p>
<p>Virginia procedures also cause many bills not to go into effect until July, unless they are passed as emergency bills, which require a larger majority.</p>
<p><strong>RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-standoff-in-virginia-as-schools-defy-governors-order-making-masks-optional">Standoff In Virginia As Schools Defy Governor’s Order Making Masks Optional</a></strong></p>
<p><strong>RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-fairfax-schools-suspend-kids-call-police-as-system-defies-virginia-governor-on-masks">Fairfax Schools Suspend Kids, Call Police As System Defies Virginia Governor On Masks</a></strong></p>
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Virginia Judge Denies Governor’s Request To Immediately Block School Mask Mandates

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Virginia Judge Denies Governor’s Request To Immediately Block School Mask Mandates