State District Judge Tonya Parker

State District Judge Tonya Parker sided with Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins on local mask mandates. Parker issued a temporary injunction against Gov. Greg Abbott’s ban on mask mandates in Texas. Her decision is expected to be appealed to the Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas.

In addition to Jenkins order that businesses must require masks, DISD School Superintendent Michael Hinojosa ordered masks for all students in school.

Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton have continued to oppose mask mandates even as hospitals across the state are running out of ICU beds with a surge in cases of Delta Variant COVID. They’ve encouraged personal responsibility.

— David Taffet