Knox County School System Agrees To Settlement In Mask Mandate Lawsuit
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The Tennessee Conservative [By Jason Vaughn] –
A battle over masking requirements in Knox County Schools is coming to an end after the school system agrees to pay $145,000 to settle the lawsuit filed by parents who opposed the district’s decision to remove a mask mandate for the year following the COVID-19 pandemic.
The suit was initially brought against the school system by parents of students with disabilities who were upset that the school system did not renew its mask mandate for the 2021-2022 school year. In September, U.S. District Judge J. Ronnie Greer ruled that the school system must reinstate the mandate in an effort to protect students who may be more susceptible to the virus.
That mandate was temporarily lifted in March for a period of 60 days while those involved in the lawsuit went through mediation. Both the school board and the families involved in the lawsuit requested the change as COVID-19 cases continue to decrease in the county.
After a six-hour mediation meeting on Monday, the Knox County Board of Education agreed to pay $145,000 to cover the attorneys’ fees for the plaintiffs. All mediation costs will be split between the Board, the State of Tennessee, and the plaintiffs.
All appeals and lawsuits will be dismissed, and no wrongdoing will be assigned to any party.
Greer also required that attorneys for Governor Bill Lee be in attendance for the mediation, which was mediated by Chancellor Daryl Fansler.
“If you think [spending money on settling] tastes bad now…it could get real nasty,” Fansler stated. “If nobody is willing to give, you’re wasting time with me.”
Fansler warned the school board that, even if they pursued and won the lawsuit, they could still be responsible for covering all attorney’s fees for the plaintiffs because of a condition of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
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Knox County’s deputy law director, Gary Dupler, also said a ruling on the lawsuit could take anywhere from 30 days to six months. The case was set to be heard by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati on May 4, meaning students could have been forced to start the next school year in masks.
The board approved the settlement with a 7-1 vote. The only ‘no’ vote was cast by Betsy Henderson, who voted no on every proposed settlement option. Evetty Satterfield was absent from the meeting and did not vote.
Henderson said she believed that the board was being “extorted for money” and that the lawsuit was “never about health and safety.”
The settlement and dismissal of the lawsuit means all of Green’s orders regarding the mask mandate have now expired, and the school district will no longer be subject to any masking regulations.
About the Author: Jason Vaughn, Media Coordinator for The Tennessee Conservative ~ Jason previously worked for a legacy publishing company based in Crossville, TN in a variety of roles through his career. Most recently, he served as Deputy Director for their flagship publication. Prior, he was a freelance journalist writing articles that appeared in the Herald Citizen, the Crossville Chronicle and The Oracle among others. He graduated from Tennessee Technological University with a Bachelor’s in English-Journalism, with minors in Broadcast Journalism and History. Contact Jason at news@TennesseeConservativeNews.com
Masks simply don’t work and there is no evidence that masks provide protection at all so why would anyone pay off a group of useless submissive idiots ? In fact masks have the potential to harm people for various reasons . I don’t get this stupidity at all .
Never roll over and let the Communists get their way like this . It’s way past time that this stupidity and cowardice ends !!!
Amen stop the madness.. No more masks
This case is the very reason I pulled my kids from. Public school and enrolled them in private school with faith baked in the curriculum. I understand many can’t afford this route but I feel we need to go back to not being afraid to allow faith in our life. These plaintiffs were so out of line and there has been substantial evidence given to show that one of the families has a relationship with the judge. I feel they knew they could sue, win, and in appeal get their fees paid due to loopholes. Of course when they say the school district pays, that means we pay. The school has no revenue generating operation. They just take. Yet another reason public school is failing. They don’t do much to teach the youth in responsibility.
At some point in 2012 Stephen Triplett, who is running for Knox County School Board, was served court papers for what some claimed was embezzlement from the Cleveland Heritage Christian School in Ohio.
https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/02/17/whos-running-knox-county-board-education-heres-list/6795354001/
What is Mr. Triplett hiding? Well, find out at this link to the Parma Municipal Court website. http://www.parmamunicourt.org/info/civilcasesummary/12CVF03060 . The case number is
12CVF03060.
What is he hiding? Was this embezzlement, financial mismanagement, or a mistake?
We should know this before people vote in the school board election.