Washington state bans all legislation enforcement – together with ICE brokers – from sporting masks whereas on responsibility
Washington state has enacted a new law barring all law‑enforcement personnel — including Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents — from wearing masks while on duty.
Governor Bob Ferguson, a Democrat, signed the bill into law on Thursday after it sailed through the Democratic‑run House and Senate by comfortable margins.
“Law enforcement’s job is to protect us — yet, ICE is hiding from public accountability,” Ferguson said in a statement. “For the safety of both the public and law enforcement, Washingtonians must know they are interacting with legitimate law enforcement officers.”
All non‑transparent face coverings — such as ski masks, gaiters, tactical masks, and balaclavas — are now banned for law‑enforcement personnel, though religious exemptions are allowed.
The measure also allows individuals detained by masked officers who flout the law the ability to take legal action, including by seeking compensation.
“Masked enforcement has sown fear, terror, and distrust in our communities,” Democratic state Sen. Javier Valdez, who sponsored the bill, said in a statement. “This new law ensures that anyone exercising power over another person is fully accountable and visible, and that families across Washington can feel safe knowing who is in a position of authority. Transparency is not optional, and justice should never hide behind a mask.”
Several Washington state Republicans have voiced strong opposition to the mask ban, arguing it heightens doxxing risks for officers and predicting courts would likely strike it down.
“This bill makes a ‘do nothing’ statement at the expense of the safety and privacy of our law enforcement officers,” GOP state Rep. Jeremie Dufault said earlier this month. “‘Do nothing’ because the supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution prohibits state governments from interfering in the enforcement of federal law.”
Washington is now one of several states to block officers from covering their faces.
Late last year, legislators in California passed the No Secret Police Act, which limited when federal enforcement agents can wear masks while conducting deportation operations. The law is currently being arbitrated in court.
Washington’s legislation differs from California’s law in that it bars “all law enforcement officers from wearing masks, not only federal agents,” according to Ferguson.
The focus on masked officers and agents comes after Trump — who promised to carry out the largest deportation program in U.S. history — began orchestrating a nationwide immigration crackdown after his return to office.
His administration deployed swarms of federal agents, many of them sporting face coverings, to multiple U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis — where masked agents fatally shot two American citizens.
Historically, it was uncommon for ICE agents to wear masks, the agency’s director has said. They only began covering their faces in April, following a rise in threats against them.
Most Americans, 61 percent, believe it is definitely or likely unacceptable for officers to wear face coverings that obscure their identity, according to a Pew Research Center survey released on January 29.
Source: independent.co.uk
