Schmitt drops lawsuits against Missouri schools, but not CPS

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt has dismissed most of the lawsuits he filed earlier this year against school districts over mask mandates.

However, that doesn’t include Columbia Public Schools.

Schmitt’s office announced Friday that he was dismissing all but seven of the more than 40 lawsuits he filed in January. His spokesman said the lawsuits were being dismissed because many districts have dropped their mask mandates.

Spokesman Chris Nuelle says the attorney general would refile the lawsuits if districts reinstate the mask mandates. Several school officials said they dropped their mask mandates because of a sharp decline in COVID-19 cases, not because of the lawsuits. Schmitt also dismissed a similar lawsuit against the city of St. Louis.

CPS, which Schmitt has sued over mask mandates twice, is not among the districts whose lawsuit was dropped. However, the Jefferson City School District was among those districts.

A trial in the CPS case has been set for October.

A spokesman for Schmitt’s office said lawsuits continue against five districts that still have mandates in place along with St. Charles schools and CPS.

ABC 17 News Digital Content Director Matthew Sanders contributed to this report.