California parents challenge school closure order

A group of California parents have filed a lawsuit challenging Gov. Gavin Newsom's order barring schools from opening for in-person instruction until ir counties get off state watch list for COVID-19.

A federal judge is set to hear arguments Monday in complaint filed against Gov. Newsom and or top ministration officials.

plaintiffs argue that barring in-person classes this fall will hurt students, despite ongoing pandemic. y charge state officials are putting politics ahe of well-being of children and violating ir constitutional rights to a meaningful education.

Jesse Petrilla, one of plaintiffs, said he's worried about how distance learning will impact his 6-year-old son, who is starting first gre in Orange County this fall.

Petrilla said online instruction has h a negative impact on his son's discipline, behavior and enthusiasm for learning - and me it difficult for him and his wife to work.

"I just pray that he is given opportunity to get education that he deserves," Petrilla said. "Orwise, my wife and I were really afraid of long-term setbacks that this may have on him for life."

Last month, Newsom laid out strict criteria for school reopenings that makes it unlikely vast majority of districts will have classroom instruction in fall as coronavirus pandemic surges.

Newsom's new guidance mandates that public schools in California counties that are on a monitoring list for rising coronavirus infections cant hold in-person classes and will have to meet strict criteria for reopening.

"Safety is foundational, and safety will ultimately make determination of how we go about educating our kids as we move into fall," Newsom said.

guidance says all school staff and all students in gres 3 to 12 will be required to wear face coverings. Younger students will be encourd but t required to wear masks.

goverr's strict new regulations marked a dramatic shift from his earlier position that it was up to local school districts and boards to decide when and how to reopen. His anuncement came just weeks before many of state's 1,000 school districts return to classes in mid-August.

Many of state's largest school districts will be starting fall term online, including Oakland Unified School District, which began distance learning on Aug. 10.

"We filed suit because we began at Center for American Liberty being deluged with panicked parents deeply concerned about negative health and learning impacts on ir children," said Harmeet Dhillon, founder of Center for American Liberty, which filed lawsuit on behalf of families. "What's at stake here is literally future of a generation of California students."

Newsom said Wednesday that California, with nearly 600,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases, is making progress in rate of virus transmission and hospitalizations because people are largely hering to rules requiring people to wear masks and keep ir distance. Still, officials reported ar 160 deaths Thursday.

For most people, new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older ults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.