SAN ANTONIO (WBAP/KLIF) – A mask requirement for San Antonio schools was temporarily blocked by the Texas Supreme Court on Thursday.
The decision to grant the emergency motion for temporary relief in the case of Abbott vs, San Antonio keeps the decision to enforce mask mandates with the governor, not local government entities.
“The Texas Supreme Court has sided with the law, and the decision to enforce mask mandates lies with the governor’s legislatively-granted authority,” Attorney General Paxton said. “Mask mandates across our state are illegal, and judges must abide by the law. Further non-compliance will result in more lawsuits.”
SMU Law Professor, Eric Cedillo, told WBAP/KLIF News that the ruling could set the precedent for future cases.
“But as far as the language itself, it is not all encompassing,” Cedillo insisted. “It isn’t necessarily statewide. It isn’t stopping all school districts from doing what it is that they’re doing.”
Cedillo said the Texas Supreme Court decision in San Antonio is specific to the legal process, not the merits of the argument.
“A trial on the merits hasn’t been done,” he said. “This is just to maintain the status quo, and the Supreme Court maintains that the status quo is on the governor’s side in terms of no mask mandates.”
Cedillo expects that the decision sets the precedent for how the state’s high court will rule on the masking issue during the injunctive process.
Dallas ISD, Richardson ISD, and several other local school districts continue to require masks on all campuses.
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