The California Supreme Court has declined to hear arguments against Gov. Gavin Newsom’s restrictions on in-person schooling, but law firm Tyler and Bursch, LLP, which filed two petitions in partnership with Advocates for Faith and Freedom, said that this only means they will have to start in a lower court.
A statement from Tyler and Bursch said that the lawsuit challenged Newsom’s executive orders and his four-tier plan that prevent both public and private schools from returning to in-person instruction.
“Under the State’s new system, 38 California counties, including all of the most populous counties except San Diego, are categorized in the most restrictive tier,” the statement sent to the Southern California Record reads.
The result will be a filing of the petitions in the California Superior Court, according to the statement.
“Once we proceed through the normal process, we believe we will still be victorious in the end,” Tyler & Bursch Partner Robert Tyler was quoted as saying in the statement.
In a break with the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE) and Orange County Superintendent Al Mijares, the five-member Orange County Board of Education had also joined in the lawsuit, according to statements from Mijares and the OCDE sent to the California Record.
The board joined the lawsuit after passing nonbinding recommendations that students in the county be permitted to return to in-person instruction without either face masks or social distancing, according to the statement from the OCDE.
In his statement, Mijares expressed strong disapproval of the board’s actions and called their judgement and concern for student welfare into question.
A statement released online from the board says they voted 4-0 in support of litigation.
“The importance of this issue, and the severe harm that our children and community face from continued school closures, could not be any clearer, the board’s statement reads. “Broad-based distance-only learning is far inferior to in-person instruction for children, to say nothing of the negative social development, nutritional, and potential child abuse impacts of keeping students isolated at home and away from school.”
The board’s statement also notes that the only recommendations they have approved are those endorsed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
“The Superintendent conveniently fails to mention that the white paper and guidelines rely upon the opinions of medical experts and relevant medical and scientific evidence in recommending that schools reopen for in-person learning with appropriate and warranted safety measures to manage the risk of the virus,” the board statement reads.
The board also maintains in their statement that they support families who want to choose virtual learning, but that it should be a choice.
Additionally, while in his statement Mijares accused the board of wasting taxpayer money on the litigation, the board’s statement says that Tyler and Busch are representing the board’s interests pro bono, and will incur no legal fees or make use of any county staff time.