Multiple lawsuits filed against state to delay school openings

As discussions rage on throughout the state regarding the opening of schools, this week saw multiple lawsuits filed against Gov. Ron DeSantis and other officials in an attempt to delay the reopening of public schools due to safety concerns regarding the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The first lawsuit was filed in Orange County on Sunday, July 19, by Jacob V. Stuart Jr and William Wieland II on behalf of Kathryn Hammond — a teacher at Southwest Middle School — and Monique Bellefleur, a parent of three children enrolled in the school district.

Mentioned in the lawsuit — among others — were Gov. DeSantis, Orange County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Barbara Jenkins and OCPS School Board Chair Teresa Jacobs.

“Due to insufficient resources, Florida’s public schools are unable to meet the guidelines required to safely reopen schools, or to transport students to school in a safe manner,” the suit states. “By their very nature, schools prohibit the adequate social distancing that is demanded in the current environment; understanding extreme steps must be taken to protect the health, safety, well-being and security of students, teachers, workers and parents.”

In the case of both Bellefleur and Hammond, concerns for the general school population were also matched by each’s individual concerns for their own health and safety. 

According to the lawsuit, two of Bellefleur’s three children are asthmatic. Hammond’s oldest son will be entering kindergarten, and her 2-year-old son is immunocompromised. Hammond also is 13 weeks pregnant and has had pregnancy complications, which have resulted in a recommendation from her treating OB-GYN to avoid to returning to live classroom instruction, the lawsuit states.

Ultimately, in the lawsuit, Bellefleur and Hammond are seeking declaratory and injunctive relief and are claiming that the defendants are in violation of the Florida Constitution. Bellefleur and Hammond claim in the lawsuit that the defendants have failed to provide a satisfactory plan to reopen OCPS schools and that due to this failure, OCPS should be prevented from opening for in-person classes until the defendants can provide a safe and secure teaching environment.

The lawsuit by Bellefleur and Hammond was not the only one filed this week, as just a day following the lawsuit in Orange County, Florida’s largest teachers union filed a similar lawsuit on Monday, July 20, against Gov. DeSantis and other officials in Miami-Dade Circuit Court.

The Florida Education Association — alongside multiple educators — also claimed that state leaders had violated the Florida Constitution.

“The Florida Constitution is clear: public school onsite instruction and operations must be opened safely,” the lawsuit states. “The Florida Constitution mandates ‘adequate provision shall be made by law for a uniform, efficient, safe, secure and high-quality system of free public schools.’

“The defendants’ unconstitutional handling of their duties has infringed upon this mandate and requires the courts to issue necessary and appropriate relief,” the lawsuit continues. “Florida students, parents, teachers and the public deserve and are constitutionally entitled to the protections needed to assure a lawful and safe reopening.”

As the president of FEA — which is made up of more than 140,000 educators across the state — Fedrick Ingram made his concerns clear in a press release on why the organization had filed the lawsuit.

“The governor needs to accept the reality of the situation here in Florida, where the virus is surging out of control,” Ingram said in the release. “Everyone wants schools to reopen, but we don’t want to begin in-person teaching, face an explosion of cases and sickness, then be forced to return to distance learning. Florida’s Constitution demands that public schools be safe. Teachers and parents want our schools to meet that basic standard.”