An Illinois judge has granted a temporary restraining order in a lawsuit that sought to end mask mandates in schools districts statewide, effectively blocking the masking requirement and other mitigation measures, prompting Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office to declare that it will appeal the ruling.
Sangamon County Judge Raylene DeWitte Grischow said in a Feb. 4 ruling that the defendants—Pritzker, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), and more than 140 school districts—are barred from enforcing school mask mandates, exclusion protocols, and COVID-19 testing requirements.
