Schools sue and mayor defies Arkansas mask mandate ban

(AP) Arkansas’ ban on mask mandates faces a new legal challenge and defiance from the mayor of the state capital as the state’s coronavirus cases continue to spiral. The Little Rock and Marion school districts on Thursday asked a state judge to block the law Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed in April prohibiting schools and other governmental bodies from requiring masks. Little Rock’s mayor issued an order requiring masks in the city’s public spaces. The moves came as Republican lawmakers appeared unlikely to roll back the prohibition.