{"id":74288,"date":"2025-07-29T13:51:32","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T20:51:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=74288"},"modified":"2025-07-29T13:51:32","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T20:51:32","slug":"la-county-supervisors-move-forward-with-ordinance-prohibiting-law-enforcement-agents-from-concealing-identities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=74288","title":{"rendered":"LA County Supervisors Move Forward With Ordinance Prohibiting Law Enforcement Agents from Concealing Identities"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Photo<\/p>\n

Photo Credit: Carlin Stiehl\/Los Angeles Times<\/p>\n

Hahn and Solis ordinance would also require law enforcement, including federal agents, to visibly display identification<\/em><\/p>\n

Los Angeles, CA<\/strong> \u2013 Today the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to direct county counsel to draft\u00a0an ordinance<\/a>\u00a0proposed by Supervisor Janice Hahn and co-authored by Supervisor Hilda Solis that would prohibit law enforcement officers from concealing their identities while on duty in unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. The vote was 4-0-1 with Supervisor Kathryn Barger abstaining.<\/p>\n

\u201cAcross the county, people are being pulled out of their cars, beaten, and ripped from their families by men in tactical gear with balaclavas, no badges, and no names,\u201d\u00a0said Supervisor Hahn.<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cThat\u2019s not how law enforcement in a democracy should operate. Residents have a right to know who is stopping them, questioning them, and detaining them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the ICE raids began in early June, residents across LA County have reported disturbing encounters with plainclothes or masked agents \u2014 many refusing to identify themselves or display any form of official credentials. These incidents have sparked fear and confusion over potential impersonation and abuse.<\/p>\n

“The use of masks, tactical gear, and refusal to show identification is not only alarming and confusing, but erodes public trust and raises serious safety concerns,”\u00a0said Chair Pro Tem and First District Supervisor, Hilda L. Solis<\/strong>. “Residents have a right to know who is operating in our communities, especially during times of heightened fear amid aggressive and warrantless raids.”<\/p>\n

Hahn and Solis\u2019 motion calls for the creation of a County ordinance that would:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Prohibit law enforcement officers, including federal agents, from wearing masks<\/strong>\u00a0or personal disguises while interacting with the public in the course of their duties in unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County \u2014 with limited exceptions such as for medical protection, fire\/smoke safety, gas masks, or undercover operations.<\/li>\n
  2. Require all law enforcement officers, including federal agents, to visibly display identification<\/strong>\u00a0and agency affiliation while performing their duties in public spaces within the unincorporated County.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Questions have been raised about whether the County of Los Angeles will be able to enforce this requirement on federal agents. \u00a0It is generally understood that local and state governments do not regulate federal law enforcement. However, Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of UC Berkeley Law School, has said that that is not absolute \u2013 especially in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers the western United States.<\/p>\n

    “The test is, if a federal agent acts in an ‘objectively unreasonable manner,’ the state may bring a criminal prosecution,” Chemerinsky was\u00a0quoted by NPR<\/a>. “So I think the question is, would a state prohibition on law enforcement wearing masks interfere with the performance of their duties? Is not wearing masks objectively reasonable?”<\/p>\n

    \u201cUltimately, it might have to be decided by a court,\u201d\u00a0said Hahn.<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cBut regardless, it is important that we set the clear expectation that when you are in LA County, this is how all law enforcement should conduct themselves. Our communities are asking us to protect them. \u00a0I believe that implementing this ordinance will show that LA County stands up to injustice and hate by working to hold all law enforcement officers accountable to their duty to protect and serve.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Photo Credit: Carlin Stiehl\/Los Angeles Times...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-74288","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ca-local"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74288","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=74288"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74288\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":74289,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74288\/revisions\/74289"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=74288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=74288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=74288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}