IL Lawyer Sues To Lift Pandemic Rules For Illinois High School Sports

An Illinois lawyer who has already sued the state governor over pandemic restrictions is now suing the Illinois High School Association on behalf of his two children.

Thomas DeVore is representing his two kids, rising seniors in an Illinois high school, according to The Chicago TribuneThe IHSA announced on July 3 that high school student-athletes could return to practice and competition if schools could implement plans for social distancing and sanitizing. But the Tribune reports that about a week later, the IHSA said Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker had required some bigger changes.

Those changes would require all athletes to wear masks during indoor athletic activities, though outdoor activities won’t require masks if athletes are socially distanced. The state would also “ban any physical contact,” which The Tribune reports means the end of scrimmages in sports like basketball, football, soccer, and water polo.

DeVore says his children will be “irreparably harmed” by the new rules. He’s filed a lawsuit claiming that the new rules updates came after an outbreak of COVID-19 infections at Lake Zurich High School. Pritzker’s deputy governor for education sent an email to the IHSA the day after the Lake Zurich outbreak mandating indoor masks and banning physical contact in sports.

DeVore has already been legally active during the coronavirus pandemic. Earlir this year, he represented business owners in a lawsuit against Governor Pritzker over stay-at-home rules.

You can read the full lawsuit against the IHSA courtesy of WAND-17, an NBC affiliate in Illinois.

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Ken
4 years ago

I thought a University in Italy ranked sports by risks and swimming, tennis…
https://swimswam.com/water-polo-open-water-swimming-deemed-among-safest-sports-from-coronavirus/

Surely there is risk in the locker room, but in the pool? If not sharing equipment? And exhaling into the water…

I hope the link is helpful.

Eisenheim
4 years ago

100 up votes and I will expose OL’ LONGHORN’s identity

Hillbilly
4 years ago

As an American Expat living overseas, I can only shake my head at these comments and my old country. A 2nd lockdown is inevitable at this point, maybe you will learn your lesson this time.

Pags
4 years ago

Truth: Pools are a far greater death risk to kids under 18 than this virus. As swimming advocates, we should be careful how hard we bang the “any avoidable risk is unacceptable” drum.

Despise the Media
4 years ago

Is too much hope being put into a coronavirus vaccine? YES!

Vaccines are hard to develop, and can be dangerous. This is a vaccine for a disease where 40% (at current estimate, up from 35% before) have no symptoms, and where only about .4% die. It’s also a widespread disease — this isn’t Ebola where you could vaccinate 50,000 people and bring an outbreak to an end. You’d have to vaccinate a billion or more. When you vaccinate huge numbers of people for a disease that isn’t very dangerous, your vaccine has to be very safe to be better than the disease. That doesn’t go well with a rushed development effort.

Merck CEO says raising COVID-19 vaccine hopes ‘a grave… Read more »

Despise the Media
Reply to  Despise the Media
4 years ago

Happy July 15th!

Despise the Media
4 years ago

According to today’s WSJ, only 2 children in metro Chicago under the age of 18 have died from CV19. That’s a lot less than the number of 18 & under who died in Chicago last weekend from gunshots.

HISWIMCOACH
Reply to  Despise the Media
4 years ago

Thanks for sharing. The media is indeed the virus.

HISWIMCOACH
Reply to  HISWIMCOACH
4 years ago
PsychoDad
Reply to  Despise the Media
4 years ago

You did not have to add that cheap racist shoot at black people, you know. But, I am not here to argue, nor will I ever argue with HISWIMCOACH again – no point. I just want to know if we open and go back to swimming like nothing is happening, how many other people’s children are you ready to sacrifice? How many dead children is worth a full swimming season? Some of them will die, as there are many asthmatic and diabetic and obese. How many of them should die for you to splash in the pool? 2, 10, 50, 100? What is an acceptable number? Now, imagine one of them is yours, would you think the same? By the… Read more »

HISWIMCOACH
Reply to  PsychoDad
4 years ago

You’re so thick ….. and completely ruled by fear.

Everything you write is irrational. Best of luck with that life approach.

Bubbles
Reply to  PsychoDad
4 years ago

Fear is a liar………..

Snarky
4 years ago

A lawyer who thinks he knows more than the generals. Haven’t we been there and done that?

DLswim
Reply to  Snarky
4 years ago

And a high school coach cinspiracy theorist who thinks he’s an expert on virology and epidemiology. Sure he knows what he’s talking about.

Collegeswimmerwhoiswearingamask
4 years ago

College swimmer here–PATIENTLY WAITING and following all public health guidelines so I can hopefully have some remaining competitive career. By pushing this reopening and fighting over how many people will die, you are sacrificing ANY shred of a chance I have of finishing my swimming with a real meet. Pls just wear a mask and follow the rules so we can all get back SAFELY with our teammates.

CA_LAWYER
Reply to  Collegeswimmerwhoiswearingamask
4 years ago

Powerful statement young man. Stay strong!

HISWIMCOACH
Reply to  Collegeswimmerwhoiswearingamask
4 years ago

While I empathize, this is not the time to “obey” as all the shirts say.

Now is the time to get woke to what’s happening. Read some things, study data, here’s a good piece to start with:
https://medium.com/@oksensei66/covid-the-lies-we-dont-question-56eb6e929a27

Best of luck with the season.

Blackflag82
Reply to  HISWIMCOACH
4 years ago

Get out of here with your nonsense and wear a mask already

Gaglianone’s Boot
Reply to  HISWIMCOACH
4 years ago

You know literally anyone can post on medium right?

HISWIMCOACH
Reply to  Gaglianone’s Boot
4 years ago

Yup, the whole flatten the curve nonsense started on Medium. And look where we are now.

Gaglianone’s Boot
Reply to  HISWIMCOACH
4 years ago

Pretty sure that started with doctors and scientists and ended because people like you couldn’t be adults.

About Jared Anderson

Jared Anderson

Jared Anderson swam for nearly twenty years. Then, Jared Anderson stopped swimming and started writing about swimming. He's not sick of swimming yet. Swimming might be sick of him, though. Jared was a YMCA and high school swimmer in northern Minnesota, and spent his college years swimming breaststroke and occasionally pretending …

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