The owner of a Liberty Tax Service location banned the use of masks by customers and employees at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, despite a statewide mask mandate, and ultimately was hit with more than $100,000 in fines. Now, Massachusetts’ highest state court has dismissed the business owner’s challenge to the mask mandate as moot.

Ariana Murrell is the owner and operator of a Liberty Tax Service location in Lynn, Massachusetts. When the governor issued a statewide mask mandate, she initially adhered to the rule in her place of business. However, Murrell became convinced that masks themselves were a health risk and decided to implement a no-mask policy at her business. According to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court’s May 2 opinion, the policy banned both customers and staff members from wearing masks while on the premises.