SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — The Illinois attorney general is appealing a judge’s ruling that invalidated the governor’s requirement that masks be worn in schools to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Democratic Attorney General Kwame Raoul filed an emergency appeal to the 4th District Appellate Court in Springfield. It seeks to halt a temporary restraining order against the mask mandate.

Sangamon County Circuit Judge Raylene Grischow on Friday declared that Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker had overstepped his authority in an emergency order issued in the fall that has required students and staff to wear face coverings. Raoul’s appeal requested an immediate response from the appellate court because it was filed on an emergency basis.