KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. — The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals denied a motion from the Knox County Board of Education to temporarily remove the mask mandate, which had been ordered by a district court.
In late October, the BOE asked the appeals court for no mask mandate while it considered the case completely.
On Dec. 20, a three-judge panel of the circuit appeals court denied the motion meaning the lower court injunction requiring masks in Knox County Schools will stay in place.
The panel said it agreed with the district court, which had previously denied the BOE's request.
It cited that virtual schooling was not "a reasonable alternative to universal masking" based on the Tennessee law requiring students to take state tests in person and the district's virtual school requirement to have a caregiver present imposing "significant financial burdens on parents and guardian."
The judges also pointed to the BOE's own acknowledgment that “the number of students engaging in obvious non-compliance is less than 1% of the student population.”
The ruling does not mean the mask mandate cannot be overturned eventually. It will just continue for now.