Senators Wiener & Arreguin Announce Legislation To Prohibit Local, State & Federal Law Enforcement From Covering Their Faces & Require Stronger Identification
SAN FRANCISCO – Senators Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) and Jesse Arreguin (D-Berkeley) introduced SB 627, the No Secret Police Act. The bill prohibits law enforcement at all levels from covering their faces while conducting operations in the state of California. The bill also requires officers to be identifiable via their uniform, whether with name or other identifier. As the Trump Administration expands the use of secret police tactics, SB 627 boosts transparency and supports public safety by bolstering public trust in law enforcement.
SB 627 will exempt SWAT teams, as well as medical grade masks (surgical or N95, pursuant to a departmental health policy) and masks designed to protect against exposure to smoke during a state of emergency related to wildfires.
“The recent federal operations in California have created an environment of profound terror. If we want the public to trust law enforcement, we cannot allow them to behave like secret police in an authoritarian state,” said Senator Wiener. “Law enforcement officers do critically important work to keep our communities safe, and they should be proud to show their faces and provide identifying information when doing so. It boosts trust in law enforcement, which makes it easier for law enforcement to do their jobs and makes California safer for all of us.”
“Our first responders are responsible for vital work in protecting our communities, and trust and accountability are a key aspects in keeping our neighborhoods safe,” said Senator Arreguín. “This bill will ensure that law enforcement are easily identifiable, maintaining that trust and accountability.”
In recent months, federal law enforcement officers have conducted raids — in California and across the country — while covering their faces and, at times, badges, names, and other identifying information. They sometimes wear jackets stating “Police” — effectively impersonating local law enforcement. Such raids have occurred in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Concord, Downey, Montebello, and many other places since the new federal administration began ramping up its immigration enforcement efforts.
In some operations in other states, federal law enforcement have appeared masked to grab residents off the street and whisk them away to detention centers across state lines without contacting their families or loved ones. University students, workers, and others have been grabbed off the street, sent to detention centers, and even been sent to a gulag in El Salvador.
These behaviors around face coverings and failure to provide identifying information have uncovered for the public a glaring omission in state law: That law enforcement should generally be identifying themselves and not hiding their identities. And given that the current federal administration is urging and even trying to force state and local law enforcement to help enforce immigration laws, California must end this omission for all levels of law enforcement.
The increase in masked law enforcement operations has already spurred dangerous copycat activity. In Florida, a woman was recently arrested for allegedly dressing as a masked ICE officer and kidnapping her ex-boyfriend's wife.
The bill defines law enforcement officers as any officer of a local, state, or federal law enforcement agency, or any person acting on behalf of a local, state, or federal law enforcement agency. A violation of the bill’s prohibition is punishable as a misdemeanor.
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