D229 Board Member Sues Pritzker, Ayala, Over Face Mask Order

OAK LAWN, IL — An Oak Lawn Community High School Dist. 229 school board member is suing Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Dr. Carmen Ayala, director of the Illinois State Board of Education, over the mandate requiring students in grades PreK-12 to wear face masks indoors.

Robert Cruz filed his 38-page complaint Thursday in Cook County Circuit Court “individually, and in his official capacity as a Member of the Oak Lawn Community High School District 229 School Board.” Cruz was elected to the school board in April.

D229 board president Rob Loehr and Supt. Dr. Michael Riordan issued in a written statement, saying they first learned of the “verified complaint” against the governor and the state school superintendent when it was filed on Thursday.

“Oak Lawn Community High School District 229 is not a party to this lawsuit in any manner,” Loehr and Riordan said. “No District 229 funding has been spent or allocated in support of this litigation.”

Loehr and Riordan further stated that the district’s seven-member board “never discussed, contemplated, or supported this or any litigation against the Governor or the State Superintendent.” They also said Dist. 229 would be taking action to remove references to the school district from Cruz’s lawsuit.

“OLCHS is fully committed to the safety and well-being of our students, staff and visitors,” the district officials continued. “We have been and will continue to be fully compliant with all guidance and directives from ISBE, IDPH [Illinois Department of Public Health] and the Governor to ensure a safe and full return to school.”

On Aug. 4, Pritzker announced a mandate requiring Illinois public and private schools serving pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students to follow ISBE and IDPH guidance. This included the wearing of face coverings indoors regardless of vaccination status, consistent with CDC guidance.

Pritzker has already suspended state recognition of three private schools for defying the face mask mandate, including Bethany Lutheran School in Naperville, Lutheran School of St. Luke in Itaska, and Trinity Christian School of Shorewood. The ISBE has also placed 21 Illinois public school districts on probation When a school loses state recognition status, it can no longer access state funding and cannot participate in Illinois High School Association or Illinois Elementary School Association sports and activities.

In his complaint, Cruz claims that Pritzker’s “insatiable appetite for power“ by issuing an executive order requiring students in OreK-12 public and private schools to wear face coverings indoors is in “abject disregard of the separation-of-powers doctrine of the Illinois Constitution. Cruz also maintains that the Illinois General Assembly has vested local school boards with the authority to adopt and enforce policies for the management and governance of public schools in the district.

“In doing so, Gov. Pritzker not only vitiates local school boards’ authority, but also that authority of Illinois parents to make health-related decisions concerning their own children,” according to the complaint.

Cruz maintains that Pritzker was erroneous when he relied on the Illinois Constitution and Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act when he took authority to issue his face covering order. Cruz also alleges that Pritzker’s powers are executive, and that the legislative branch of state government granted authority to school directors and local school boards to implement temporary measures to prevent the spread of an infectious disease.

The lawsuit seeks both a temporary and permanent injunction against enforcement of the governor’s order. Cruz did not return calls or texts seeking comment.

In his candidate questionnaire for the D229 school board election this past April, Cruz identified getting parents, students and staff comfortable coming back to school for full-time, in-person learning safely, as the single most pressing issue facing the district.

“I plan to create more communication within the respective groups regarding how we will monitor the safety protocols. Additionally, I will suggest a portion of the $3,000,000 awarded to the district be used to ensure our school is sanitized and cleaned in a fashion that suits the students, staff and parents of OLCHS.”

Cruz is being represented by Joliet-based attorney Ricardo “Rick“ Munoz, who lost his bid to run as a Republican against Will County State’s Attorney Jim Glasgow in the 2020 election, and Mike Yoder, a Washington, D.C.-area attorney who specializes in constitutional litigation. No hearing information was found in the complaint.