The Texas Supreme Court on Friday ordered a Dallas County judge to stop requiring people to wear face masks in her courtroom despite the judge’s rare autoimmune disorder that she says puts her at high risk of infection.
In an advisory order issued Friday afternoon, justices wrote that state and federal law does not allow Dallas County Court at Law No. 1 Judge D'Metria Benson to impose a mask mandate in her courtroom. The court said the policy is “an unfair and unduly burdensome imposition” on people in her court, which violates a state rule on judicial administration.
That's despite Benson saying she put the policy in place because she’s immunocompromised, and her doctor advised the mask mandate.
"The Court has carefully considered Judge Benson’s responses and expresses its sympathy for her health challenges," justices wrote. "Nevertheless, the facial visibility of courtroom participants is an essential feature of a properly functioning justice system."
Benson told KERA in a statement Monday that she will follow the Texas Supreme Court’s order.
“I am currently exploring alternative solutions to masking,” she wrote. “In the interim, all proceedings will be conducted virtually, and jury trials will be temporarily suspended until an appropriate alternative solution can be implemented.”
The order was prompted by Dallas attorney Scott Frenkel submitting a complaint May 4 to Judge Ray Wheless, who oversees administrative issues in a judicial region that includes Dallas County. The complaint — first obtained and reported by the Texas Lawbook — alleged Benson has a standing order requiring people entering her courtroom to wear masks and "divulge intimate information about their health."
Benson put her policy in place March 2, 2023, just after the Texas Supreme Court ended its emergency order allowing judges to impose mask mandates, the Texas Lawbook reported. Frenkel was allegedly not allowed inside Benson’s court to represent clients in two different cases — including in a trial — because he declined to wear a mask. Wheless told the Texas Supreme Court he had cautioned Benson against such a policy.
According to the complaint, Benson herself wasn’t wearing a mask, the Texas Lawbook reported. Frenkel's attorney Brian Hail told KERA News Benson has been seen at large gatherings outside the courtroom without a mask.
"The only place that it seems like her condition mandates the use of a mask is when she's on the bench and it's other people that need to wear it," Hail said.
The attorney said Frenkel has a medical condition that doesn't allow Frenkel to wear a mask, and "no further intrusive inquiry" needs to be made into his health, just like Benson's.
Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock sent a letter to Benson May 13 asking her to clarify the policy, indicating it was likely unlawful. In her own letter two days later obtained by KERA News, Benson said she was unaware of the complaint and hadn’t seen Blacklock’s letter.
She said she has a rare autoimmune disorder developed after the COVID-19 pandemic that makes her highly susceptible to infection. The judge also denied requiring “heightened health screenings” for people entering her courtroom.
In another letter to Blacklock May 22, Benson wrote that her masking policy is meant to protect her own health, not to prevent the spread of COVID-19. She argued the Texas Health and Safety Code specifically prohibits mandating face masks to prevent spreading COVID-19.
Benson explained she was hospitalized multiple times at the beginning of 2025 due to severe infections, and her physician advised her to require masks in her court.
Benson, witnesses and her court reporter remain unmasked behind plexiglass shields during court proceedings, she said, and she wears a mask during sidebar bench conferences. Attorneys are unmasked during significant parts of court proceedings like conducting jury selection and cross-examining witnesses.
Frenkel never spoke with Benson about the masking policy as Hail alleged, she said. She also wrote that she personally observed Frenkel sitting masked in the back of her courtroom for several hours on multiple days during trial.
Benson said she based her policy on a 2020 opinion by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton that states a judge has “broad discretion over the conduct of its proceedings,” including reasonable attire restrictions. Attorney general opinions are persuasive but not legally binding.
“Contrary to Mr. Hail’s assertions, common sense and propriety demand that society protect the most vulnerable and one another,” Benson said in the May 22 letter. “My policies are based upon common sense and medical advice.”
KERA News has reached out to Hail for comment on Benson’s May 22 letter.
Benson, a Democrat, has spent more than a decade on the bench. She lost this year's March primary in her bid for reelection to former Dallas appeals court judge Erin Nowell, but Benson will remain on the bench until her term ends Dec. 31.
Toluwani Osibamowo is KERA’s law and justice reporter. Got a tip? Email Toluwani at tosibamowo@kera.org.
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