Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt has filed at least 27 new lawsuits against Missouri school districts over school masking policies.

Schmitt tweeted the news on his twitter account Friday afternoon.

Most of the districts are in the Kansas City and St. Louis areas, with one in the southwest Missouri Ozarks.

KY3 reports Waynesville School District is listed as a defendant in a lawsuit filed by the Attorney General and two other local plaintiffs on Friday.

The lawsuits come after a November ruling by a Cole County Judge saying that local health departments and school districts have no authority to issue mask mandates or quarantine orders.

This is after the Attorney General Eric Schmitt issued a cease and desist letter to Springfield Public Schools, the largest school district in the state, over its mask mandate.

Missouri House Minority Leader Crystal Quade (D-Springfield) released a statement in response to the Attorney General’s lawsuits.

“Today, Eric Schmitt sued dozens of Missouri school districts for taking reasonable and entirely lawful steps to protect their students from a highly contagious disease, steps that became necessary in part because Schmitt bullied them in dropping their mask mandates. Quite predictably, coronavirus infections quickly spread like wildfire among teachers and students, prompting districts to reinstate masks and forcing many schools to close. These lawsuits are beyond frivolous and read more like campaign literature while citing scant legal authority for his position, which is not surprising since there isn’t any.

“Eric Schmitt’s stunning abuse of power is making countless Missouri kids sick and preventing schools from keeping their doors open. He is corrupting his high office for political gain and is unworthy of the authority Missourians have entrusted him.”

The Attorney General participated in an video interview with KY3 News, where he explained his position in greater detail.