State and National Government
It looks like the latest efforts to eliminate almost all mandatory minimum sentences in Virginia are already dead in the General Assembly — and this time, dying in an unexpected location. Mandatory minimums on the books cover crimes ranging from drunken driving to child rape. More from WFIR’s Evan Jones:
LEESBURG, Va. (AP) — The Supreme Court of Virginia on Monday rejected on procedural grounds a petition from parents seeking to invalidate Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s executive order prohibiting school systems from enforcing mask mandates in the classroom.
Youngkin and Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares are battling in court on multiple fronts to defend the executive order. But the ruling is far from definitive. In a footnote, the justices say they offer “no opinion on the legality of EO 2,” the executive order that seeks to undo mask mandates, which are aimed at preventing the spread of the coronavirus.
The Supreme Court ruling dismisses the petition — submitted by a group of parents in Chesapeake — that sought an unconventional form of relief called a writ of mandamus. The court ruled that writs of mandamus are reserved for extraordinary circumstances, which it said don’t exist in this case.
Miyares said the state has “better risk mitigation strategies and vaccines, and we know much more about the efficacy of requiring children to wear masks all day ” two years into the pandemic, Miyares said in a statement.
But Kevin Martingayle, a lawyer who filed the petition on behalf of the Chesapeake parents, said the ruling is only a procedural defeat, and noted language in the court’s opinion suggesting that local school boards have “a degree of discretion” under state law on whether to impose mandates.
“This is far from over,” Martingayle said in a statement.
The ruling comes three days after an Arlington county judge issued a temporary injunction barring enforcement of Youngkin’s executive order while the case proceeds. In that case, the judge ruled preliminarily that Youngkin does not have the authority given to local school boards under state law to decide what steps are necessary and practicable in keeping students and staff safe during in-person learning.
A third lawsuit is being heard in Loudoun County, where parents opposed to the mask mandate are suing the local school board for refusing to enact Youngkin’s executive order.
The Loudoun school board has asked the judge to delay hearing the case, saying that the legal issues are nearly identical to those in the Arlington case. The school board’s lawyers argue it makes more sense to let that case make its way through the appeals process rather than having two cases on parallel tracks.
The judge scheduled a hearing for next week on whether to delay the case.
Youngkin issued the order on his first day in office last month. Since then, some school boards have eliminated mask mandates that were required under the previous administration, while others have defied his order, arguing it usurps local authority and dismantles a policy that has worked well in reducing transmission of the coronavirus.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said Monday that he regrets what he called an “unauthorized” tweet sent from his campaign account over the weekend that attacked a high school student and invoked a scandal previous Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam faced. “On Saturday night, an unauthorized tweet came from a campaign account. I regret that this happened and it shouldn’t have,” Youngkin tweeted Monday. “I have addressed it with my team.”
Saturday’s tweet was directed at Ethan Lynne, a 17-year-old student involved in Democratic politics. Lynne tweeted about recent news articles that raised questions about the Youngkin administration’s plans for an initiative highlighting the history of enslaved people who labored in the Executive Mansion.
“Team Youngkin,” the governor’s official campaign account, responded by posting a photo of Lynne with Gov. Ralph Northam, along with a racist photo that appeared in Northam’s medical school yearbook and surfaced in 2019. “Here’s a picture of Ethan with a man that had a Blackface/KKK photo in his yearbook,” the campaign tweeted. The post, which was later deleted, drew widespread attention online and condemnation from Democrats.
A spokesperson for Youngkin didn’t respond to questions from news outlets over the weekend. When Youngkin weighed in Monday morning through his governor’s office account, he also said: “We must continue to work to bring Virginians together. There is so much more that unites us than divides us.” Lynne tweeted that Youngkin, in his “regret” tweet, didn’t apologize or condemn what happened. “I still hope he does, and that he will take time to recognize the culture of toxicity he has created within his first month of office,” he tweeted. Lynne and his mother were scheduled to hold a news conference Monday afternoon
When former Washington Commanders employees took part in a roundtable discussion with the House Oversight Committee late last week seeking the release of the NFL’s report on sexism and hostility in the workplace – new accusations came forward against NFL Team owner Dan Snyder. WFIR’s Ian Price has more:
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP) – A Virginia Senate committee has killed two key pieces of education legislation sought by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, including one that was designed to eliminate the teaching of critical race theory in K-12 schools.
The committee on Thursday also killed a bill that would have made it easier to create charter schools in parts of the state. Education reform has been a key part of Youngkin’s agenda, but Democrats still narrowly control the state Senate, and so far Democrats on the Education and Health Committee have blocked his legislation from moving forward.
Youngkin, though, is still moving ahead on the administrative level with an initiative to root out policies based on critical race theory.
Dr. Chapman Rackaway (pictured, Radford photo) is the chair and a professor in the Department of Political Science at Radford University. He’s also a “subject matter expert” on the Supreme Court. With the upcoming retirement of Stephen Breyer he weighs in on the choices for President Biden with WFIR’s Gene Marrano, in this “Longer Listen” segment:
Dr. Chapman Rackaway- Radford University photo
President Joe Biden has already indicated whom he wants to replace retiring Justice Stephen Breyer with on the US Supreme Court – a black woman, which would be a first. A local “subject matter expert” offers his take, as WFIR’s Gene Marrano reports:
