BANGOR, Maine (AP) A father is suing in federal court over a mask mandate imposed on his 12-year-old daughter in the Winslow school system.
The lawsuit names the town of Winslow, school board, public schools and Superintendent Peter Thiboutot as defendants, and accuses them of “aggrandizing” the risk COVID-19 poses to children.
In the lawsuit, filed Friday, Scott Fortuna contends the mask mandate violates his rights under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution “to make decisions concerning the medical care of his child.” The lawsuit said COVID-19 poses “little, if any, health risk to children.”
Fortuna, who lives in Penobscot County, could not be reached immediately for comment. His attorney didn’t immediately return a message.
Face masks have been a flashpoint in pandemic politics since the earliest weeks of the government response to the virus.
Mask mandates were eased in the spring, but they’re coming back with a COVID-19 resurgence caused by the delta variant.
Masks are currently recommended in 15 of the state’s 16 counties by the Maine Center for Disease Control.
