Missouri attorney general sues St. Louis County over COVID health orders
The suit takes issue with restrictions on religious institutions, mask requirements for K-12 grades, government pre-approval for events and outdoor mask requirements Author: Kayla Wheeler Updated: 12:51 PM CDT May 11, 2021
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt has filed a lawsuit against St. Louis County Executive Sam Page, Dr. Faisal Khan and the St. Louis County Department of Public Health.
Schmitt said he filed the lawsuit over the “arbitrary, capricious, and unreasonable application of COVID-19 restrictions in St. Louis County.” The suit specifically takes issue with restrictions on religious institutions, masking requirements for K-12 grades, government pre-approval for events and outdoor mask requirements.
The Republican official’s lawsuit calls the local restrictions vague and ambiguous, but the county says the case is politically motivated.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt speaks during a news conference in St. Louis last August. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)
CLAYTON, Mo. (CN) Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed a lawsuit in state court Tuesday challenging St. Louis County’s measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
Schmitt, who is also a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, sued St. Louis County Executive Sam Page, county public health director Dr. Faisal Khan and the St. Louis County Department of Public Health.
A lower COVID-19 transmission rate in the St. Louis region and declining case averages have paved the way for Mehlville School District students to attend class five days a week in person, and with more teachers vaccinated the district is looking forward to someday stopping masks.
Mehlville and Oakville high school students started attending class in person five days a week April 19, thanks to vaccinations and those lower transmission and positivity rates.
Despite delivering good news to the Board of Education Feb. 25 in both positivity rates and substitute teacher fill rates, Superintendent Chris Gaines cautioned that there are still quite a lot of unknowns. The district held a two-part vaccination drive in March and April for staff.
Print article When David Díaz went for a recent 5-mile run in Iowa City, he took along a partner he has depended on for more than a year: his face mask. Díaz, 29, knew he did not have to. He’s fully vaccinated, and recent federal guidance says unmasked, outdoor ex ercise is safe. At first, he wore the mask around his neck. But after passing people one block later, he pulled it up - and then began wondering why. Was he posturing? Was he showing concern for others? Was he worried passersby would view him as an anti-masker? Was he actually being anti-science?
People who embraced masks are now recalibrating their relationship with an accessory that has served as a shield against a deadly pathogen, a security blanket during a crisis, and a symbol – of regard for the common good, liberal politics or belief in science.