Face Masks as Part of Paris ISD Dress Code Detained After Court Verdict – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

The North Texas school district cannot require students to wear face masks as part of its dress code, a Lamar County district judge said.

Judge R. Wesley Tidwell issues a temporary restraining order for Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, which sued Paris ISD after the supervisory board voted 5 to 1 last month to add face coverings to the district’s dress code in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19.

“The defendant does not have the authority to issue or enforce a face mask mandate in connection with Governor Abbott’s executive order GA-38,” Tidwell wrote in the order.

He went on to write that a provisional restraining order was needed to “prevent irreparable harm from continuing violations of state law without redress.”

Lamar County, where Paris is located, had an estimated 854 active cases of COVID-19 as of Tuesday, according to the Texas State Department of Health Services.

Coronavirus cases in Texas

The locations on the map are approximate district locations and are not intended to identify where infected people live.

Case data were drawn from a variety of sources including the county health department and the Texas State Department of Health Services.

Paris ISD COVID-19 Dashboard said the district had 35 active cases — eight staff members and 27 students.

“The governor of Texas does not have the authority to take over the exclusive powers and duties of the Board of Trustees to regulate and oversee the management of public schools in the district,” the district said in a statement last month.

As per Abbott’s orders, school districts cannot require students or staff to wear masks despite recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, the school system must allow individuals to wear masks if they choose to do so.

Paxton has sued six other school districts, including Richardson ISD, for defying the governor’s executive order and implementing a face mask policy.

The hearing for the state’s application for an interim injunction in the Paris ISD case is scheduled for September 21 at 9 a.m.