RESURRECTION SCHOOL; CHRISTOPHER MIANECKI, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS NEXT FRIEND ON BEHALF OF HIS MINOR CHILDREN C.M., Z.M., AND N.M.; STEPHANIE SMITH, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS NEXT FRIEND ON BEHALF OF HER MINOR CHILD F.S. v. ELIZABETH HERTEL, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS THE DIRECTOR OF THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES; DANA NESSEL, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN; LINDA VAIL, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS THE HEALTH OFFICER OF INGHAM COUNTY; CAROL A. SIEMON, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS THE INGHAM COUNTY PROSECUTING ATTORNEY - Articles

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RESURRECTION SCHOOL; CHRISTOPHER MIANECKI, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS NEXT FRIEND ON BEHALF OF HIS MINOR CHILDREN C.M., Z.M., AND N.M.; STEPHANIE SMITH, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS NEXT FRIEND ON BEHALF OF HER MINOR CHILD F.S. v. ELIZABETH HERTEL, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS THE DIRECTOR OF THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES; DANA NESSEL, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN; LINDA VAIL, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS THE HEALTH OFFICER OF INGHAM COUNTY; CAROL A. SIEMON, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS THE INGHAM COUNTY PROSECUTING ATTORNEY

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Aug 23, 2021

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ARGUED: Erin Elizabeth Mersino, GREAT LAKES JUSTICE CENTER, Lansing, Michigan, for Appellants.

Attorneys 2: ARGUED: Daniel J. Ping, OFFICE OF THE MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL, Lansing, Michigan, for Appellee Elizabeth Hertel.

Attorneys 3: ARGUED: Ann M. Sherman, OFFICE OF THE MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL, Lansing, Michigan, for Appellee Dana Nessel.

Attorneys 4: ON BRIEF: Erin Elizabeth Mersino, GREAT LAKES JUSTICE CENTER, Lansing, Michigan, Robert J. Muise, AMERICAN FREEDOM LAW CENTER, Ann Arbor, Michigan, for Appellants.

Attorneys 5: ON BRIEF: Daniel J. Ping, Joseph T. Froehlich, Ann M. Sherman, Rebecca A. Berels, OFFICE OF THE MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL, Lansing, Michigan, for State of Michigan Appellees.

Attorneys 6: ON BRIEF: Bonnie G. Toskey, Sarah K. Osburn, COHL, STOKER & TOSKEY, P.C., Lansing, Michigan, for Appellees Linda Vail and Carol Siemon. Alex J. Luchenitser, Richard B. Katskee, AMERICANS UNITED FOR SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE, Washington, D.C., for Amici Curiae.

Judge(s): SILER, MOORE, and DONALD, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan at Grand Rapids

KAREN NELSON MOORE, Circuit Judge. To control the spread of COVID-19, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (“MDHHS”) required that all persons five years of age and older wear a mask in indoor public settings, including while attending public and private K–12 schools. Plaintiffs Resurrection School, a Catholic elementary school in Lansing, Michigan, and two parents with children enrolled at the school, on behalf of themselves and their minor children, challenge the mask requirement as a violation of their free exercise of religion, equal protection, and substantive due process rights. Since Plaintiffs filed suit, MDHHS has rescinded almost all COVID-19 pandemic emergency orders, including the challenged mask requirement. We hold that Plaintiffs’ challenge to the mask requirement is not moot, and we AFFIRM the district court’s denial of Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction on the merits.

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