Donald Cosley Files Lawsuit to Challenge Governor Pritzker's Mask Mandate

Attorney Donald Cosley has initiated a lawsuit on behalf of Tracy Cosley and the couple's son to challenge Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker's executive order requiring students to wear masks while at school. This lawsuit is seeking an injunction to declare that the governor and the Illinois State Board of Education do not have the authority to require local school boards to follow COVID-19 guidance or penalize them for their failure to comply with requirements.

On July 30, 2021, the school board in District 214, which serves Arlington Heights, Des Plaines, Buffalo Grove, Rolling Meadows, Elk Grove, Mount Prospect, Wheeling, and Prospect Heights, voted to allow the wearing of masks by students to be optional. However, on August 4, Governor Pritzker issued an executive order requiring all K-12 schools in Illinois to make masks mandatory when students are indoors. On August 11, Dr. Carmen Ayala, Director of the Illinois State Board of Education, issued a letter to all Illinois school board superintendents informing them that failure to comply with the governor's mask mandate may result in the revocation of recognition from the ISBE. As a result, District 214 amended its guidance, and it will require students to wear masks. Students who refuse to do so will face discipline, including suspension.

The lawsuit challenges the governor's authority to place these types of requirements on local school boards. It notes that the Illinois legislature is currently considering a bill that would grant the governor the authority to take these kinds of actions, which indicates that the governor currently does not have the authority to compel schools to follow COVID-19 guidance. The lawsuit is asking the court to declare that Governor Pritzker's mask mandate exceeds his authority, stop the ISBE from penalizing school districts for allowing masks to be optional, and reinstate District 214's original policy of allowing masks to be voluntary.

To view the complaint filed by Attorney Cosley, click here