SAN FRANCISCO— Local, state, and federal law enforcement officers who cover their faces while conducting official business in California could face a misdemeanor charge, according to a new proposal announced Monday.
If passed, the bill would require all law enforcement officers to show their faces and be identifiable by their uniform, which should include their name or another identifier. It would not apply to the National Guard or other troops, and it would exempt SWAT teams and officers assisting with natural disasters.
State Sen. Scott Wiener, a Democrat from San Francisco, and State Sen. Jesse Arreguin, a Democrat from Berkeley and Oakland, said the proposal aims to increase transparency and public trust in law enforcement. It also aims to protect against people attempting to impersonate law enforcement, they said.
“We are seeing more and more law enforcement officers, particularly at the federal level, covering their faces entirely, not identifying themselves at all and, at times, even wearing army fatigues where we can’t tell if these are law enforcement officers or a vigilante militia,” according to Wiener.
“They are grabbing people off our streets and disappearing people, and it’s terrifying,” according to him.
In Los Angeles, a series of immigration raids by federal officers, some wearing face coverings, sparked days of unrest throughout the city and beyond, prompting President Donald Trump to send National Guard troops and Marines to the area. More than 100 people were detained during the raids, and immigrant advocates claim they have been unable to contact them.
In recent months, federal officers have conducted raids in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Concord, Downey, and Montebello while concealing their faces, badges, and names, according to state senators.
“Law enforcement officers are public servants, and people should be able to recognize them. Otherwise, there is no transparency or accountability,” Wiener explained.
In recent weeks, social media has been flooded with videos of raids involving masked officers driving unmarked vehicles and removing people from the streets.
Ed Obayashi, a special prosecutor in California and an expert on national and state police practices, said the proposed legislation would be difficult to enforce because federal officers cannot be prosecuted in state courts for activities performed while on duty.
“If they are following federal directives, they are following federal law,” according to Obayashi.
He explained that local and state officers are already required by law to wear identifiable information and department insignia on their uniforms.
Todd Lyons, ICE’s acting director, has defended his officers’ use of facemasks, claiming they wear them to protect themselves from death threats and online harassment.
“I’m sorry if people are offended by them wearing masks, but I’m not going to let my officers and agents go out there and put their lives and families at risk because people don’t like what immigration enforcement does,” he said at a news conference earlier this month in Boston to announce nearly 1,500 arrests in the region as part of a monthlong “surge operation.”
