Beginning August 12th, Coffee County Schools made the announcement that all students, staff, and visitors inside school buildings would be required to wear face covers, to stem the spread of COVID-19. You can read more about the mask mandate here.
Manchester parent, Heather Murchison, felt the call for a mask mandate to be a “law issue.” Heather states, “Look, this is something everyone should be on board with. Your views on mask vs. no mask have no weight here. This is a law issue. There are plenty of counties being sued right now because of their act of perverting the law. You may agree with them illegally mandating now but what about next time when you do not like their overreach?”
Heather is the mother of Nico, a 9th grade Red Raider Academy Student. Murchison says in her statement regarding her legal action against the schools, “They are just slowly inching their way into being your kids pseudo parents while you are not there. Nico is my child, this was him looking at me in my eyes, into my soul and saying, “Mom I can’t wear this mask. It makes me not feel good” As a mother you all should understand that mountains will be moved and therefore a school board on a power trip is not a problem. Nico was homecoming king last year at Westwood Middle School. He is a very smart respectful child. Five minutes with him and you will see that. Putting him in in school suspension for two days and holding him from his 6th and 7th period class because the principal will not allow him on the bus to go to the main high school for weight lifting is for a lack of a better word, nuts! They are bullies! Calling my son out in front of his peers! Saying he is stupid because the mask makes him feel sick! We, as parents, make the decisions, period.”
The complaint filed by Murchison against school direct Dr. Charles Lawson and the Coffee County School Board states that her son was refused the ability to attend class on Aug. 13 and Aug. 18 at Red Raider Academy and was sent to in-school suspension when he refused to wear a mask.
The complaint states that the student “did, in fact, enter CCHS for the purpose of attending school on August 13th, 2020 and again on August 18th, 2020.” The legal document says that the student “refused to wear a mask based upon personal healthcare decisions made by himself, in conjunction with his legal guardian, Mrs. Murchison.” The complaint also explains that the student was “refused to attend class, but instead placed him in in-school suspension, separate and apart from his classmates.”
The legal document, by the office of Parham Law, also discloses that CCHS football coach and staff member, Brock Freeze, referred to the student as “stupid” and “a spoiled brat in front of the CCHS football team in retaliation for the Plaintiff’s choice not to wear a mask.”
This is a developing story. Coffee County News has reached out to Dr. Lawson for a statement on the matter, and we will update this story as it develops. You can access the full complaint in the images below. If you are viewing a mobile version of our website, you may need to zoom in on the images if they appear small.
