Two Bay Area lawmakers are looking to ban all law enforcement officers across the state from covering their faces while on the job.
Sen. Scott Wiener (D–San Francisco) and Sen. Jesse Arreguin (D–Berkeley) introduced a bill to the Legislature on Monday to prohibit local, state and federal law enforcement officers from covering their faces when interacting with the public.
The big picture: Under Senate Bill 627, dubbed the No Secret Police Act, law enforcement officers would be required to show their faces at all times and carry their name or other identifier on their uniform.
- The bill would exempt the National Guard and officers that require face coverings, such as SWAT teams, as well as officers who need to wear masks when facing wildfires.
- Any officer who does not comply with the bill would be hit with a misdemeanor.
Driving the news: SB 627 was introduced following the anti-ICE protests and riots in Los Angeles and other parts of the state.
- Both senators said federal officers have been conducting immigration raids while covering their faces and concealing their identities.
What they’re saying: Wiener said officers should be “proud to show their faces.”
- “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,” Wiener said. “They are grabbing people off our streets and disappearing people, and it’s terrifying.”
The other side: Department of Justice attorney Harmeet Dhillon reacted to the proposal by responding to Wiener’s post on X announcing the bill.
- “Scott, go check with a lawyer if this is a thing, and get back to us,” Dhillon wrote. “(Hint – it isn’t – states can’t regulate what federal law enforcement wears).”
