Trump sues California over law that bans masked federal agents

By Jaimie Ding Associated Press LOS ANGELES The Trump administration filed a lawsuit Monday over California s new laws banning federal agents from wearing masks and requiring them to have identification while conducting operations in the state RELATED California bans most of law enforcement officers from wearing masks The federal cabinet has argued the laws threaten the safety of officers who are facing unprecedented harassment doxing and violence and disclosed it will not comply with them California became the first state to ban bulk law enforcement officers including federal immigration agents from covering their faces while conducting official business under a bill that was signed in September by Gov Gavin Newsom Related Articles Letters The classroom is no place for teachers politics Granddaughter of Charlotte s Web author upset with use of its title in immigration crackdown As ICE escalates its tactics are federal agents truly untouchable in the eyes of the law He came to US as a child refugee from the former Soviet Union Now he s a father facing deportation to Ukraine dead after panga capsizes in off California coast The law prohibits neck gaiters ski masks and other facial coverings for local and federal officers including immigration enforcement agents while they conduct official business It makes exceptions for undercover agents protective equipment like N respirators or tactical gear and it does not apply to state police Newsom also signed bill requiring law enforcement to wear clear identification showing their agency and badge number while on the job The laws require federal law enforcement agencies to issue a mask initiative by July and a visible identification procedures by Jan California s anti-law enforcement policies discriminate against the federal administration and are designed to create menace for our agents These laws cannot stand U S Attorney General Pam Bondi revealed in a press release The lawsuit declared there have been multiple incidents where Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers were followed and their families threatened It cites a event of three women in Los Angeles who are being accused of livestreaming while following an ICE agent home and posting the address on Instagram Given the personal threats and violence that agents face federal law enforcement agencies allow their officers to choose whether to wear masks to protect their identities and provide an extra layer of shield the lawsuit commented Newsom has called the practice of masked federal agents arresting people across the state dystopian Critics have raised concerns about the increased role of federal agents in local policing and often unidentified agents conducting immigration enforcement events If the Trump administration cared half as much about population safety as it does about pardoning cop-beaters violating people s rights and detaining U S citizens and their kids our communities would be much safer a spokesperson for Newsom s office noted in a report The Federal Bureau of Assessment issued a memo in October to law enforcement agencies across the country advising officers to clearly identify themselves in the field It cited several incidents where masked criminals posed as immigration officers robbed and kidnapped casualties The federal administration also announced in its lawsuit that the laws violate the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution which prohibits states from regulating the federal administration It explained the law banning federal officers from wearing masks discriminates against the federal executive because it exempts state police California Attorney General Rob Bonta s office reported it was reviewing the complaint It s problematic when Californians can t tell the difference between a law enforcement officer who is charged with protecting them and a criminal who is attempting to cause them harm Bonta s office disclosed in a declaration The FBI itself has warned that the practice of ICE agents obscuring their identity has led to a rise in copycats committing crimes threatening society safety and eroding trust in law enforcement