Update, February 9, 2026
A federal judge ruled today that California cannot enforce the prohibition on facial coverings for federal law enforcement, as laid out in the state's No Secret Police Act.
Judge Christina Snyder granted a partial preliminary injunction, blocking California from enforcing the No Secret Police Act, which was signed into law in 2025, while also upholding the No Vigilantes Act, which went into effect this year.
Judge Snyder ruled that although the court had found that federal agents can do their jobs without wearing masks, the law, as is, does not apply equally to law enforcement officers across the state.
Snyder found that the law discriminates against federal agents, and for that reason violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The law currently carves out an exemption for state police.
“Security concerns exist for federal law enforcement officers with and without masks. If anything, the court finds that the presence of masked and unidentifiable individuals, including law enforcement, is more likely to heighten the sense of insecurity for all,” ruled Snyder.
Snyder found the No Vigilantes act is not in violation of the Supremacy Clause because the legislation “does not treat federal officers differently from state officers, the No Vigilantes Act, does not discriminate against the federal government," according to the judge's decision.
New legislation adding state law enforcement into the law was announced by Senator Wiener’s office in response to her decision.
”The Court also ruled that for our No Secret Police Act, SB 627, to be enforceable it must apply to all levels of police—not just federal and local officers but also state officers. SB 627 currently applies to federal and local officers only. We crafted SB 627 in consultation with constitutional law experts. Based on communications with the Governor’s office, we removed state police from the bill. Now that the Court has made clear that state officers must be included, I am immediately introducing new legislation to include state officers. I will do everything in my power to expedite passage of this adjustment to the No Secret Police Act,” said Senator Wiener in a press release.
The earlier story from February 7, 2026 is below:
“He’s saying help me,” says a man.
“Daddy, that’s ICE,” says the voice of a child.
“What if he dies?” asks another child.
They watch while Jose Casamiro Cruz yells out in pain, brutally pinned down by three men outside of the Industry Sheriff Station. One of Cruz’s arms is pushed against the ground by a man in a checkered, button-up shirt. A man in a hoodie pins down his legs, while a man in a beige button-up presses his whole body on Cruz’s upper torso—and his head, which is being pressed against the ground.
“Stop resisting,” says one of the men holding Cruz down.
Cruz continues to cry out in pain as the three men continue to exert extreme force. One of the men pulls out handcuffs. One man has a gun on his waist. No agency insignias are visible, nor is any identification of federal agency affiliation verbally stated by any of the three men in the video captured of the incident.
“Jose, stop resisting, you'll only make it worse,” says an agent, “Stop resisting, Jose.”
A person filming asks the agents to see a warrant signed by a judge.
“Ma’am, you are about to get an [sic] interfering with an arrest,” responds an agent.
“Please, help me,” says Cruz, as an agent sits on his neck and twists his arm towards his back.
The agents place handcuffs on him and drag him into an unmarked vehicle. L.A. TACO confirmed with the City of Industry Sheriff Station watch commander that the men detaining Cruz were ICE agents.
SB 805, known as the “No Vigilantes Act,” and SB 627, called the "No Secret Police Act,” were signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom on Sept. 20. Both new rules are aimed at protecting California residents from masked and unidentifiable law enforcement agents, agent impostors, and bounty hunters. The laws would make a detainment like Cruz’s a misdemeanor in the state of California.
SB 805 requires law enforcement operating in the state—whether local, state, or federal–that are not in uniform to display their agency and name or a badge number when carrying out their duties. Violation of SB 805 would result in a misdemeanor. It also makes the use of bounty hunters for immigration enforcement illegal within the state. If a law enforcement officer is found in violation of the law, it would be cited as a misdemeanor.
SB 627 prohibits any law enforcement agent or bounty hunter operating within California from wearing a facial covering. Violation of the law would result in a misdemeanor. There are certain exemptions to the law.
SB 805 and SB 627 were authored by California Senator Sasha Renée Pérez and Senator Scott Weiner, respectively. The laws are a response to the racist, brutal, and unrelenting federal immigration raids that have happened since June.
But, how will the laws work? How will state law be enforced against the federal government? And who will be held accountable? It's hard to picture how laws like this would play out in real life scenarios.
If a California resident sees individuals who appear to be law enforcement officers wearing masks in their neighborhood, they can notify local or state law enforcement, according to Senator Weiner.
“It’s telling local law enforcement agencies that they have the right to investigate if they believe something is afoot. And if someone's not providing their name or identifying the department they are with. Um, that's incredibly concerning, and they need to get involved to ensure that the public is safe,” Senator Pérez told L.A. TACO.
While it is normally an uncommon practice, a law enforcement officer can arrest or cite another law enforcement officer. In this case, a local or state law enforcement officer could cite a federal immigration agent with a misdemeanor if they are wearing a mask or are not wearing identification.
It sounds strange, right?
In normal circumstances, a law like this wouldn’t even be needed. Law enforcement agencies usually have some communication amongst each other and that’s happening a lot less often now, Senator Pérez told L.A. TACO.
“If Kristie Noem and Bill Essayli are going to direct ICE agents that they don't have to follow the law, they're really doing those agents a disservice because they violate this law at their peril,” Senator Weiner told L.A. TACO. “If they violate [SB 627], it is a crime. And they can get sued.”
If a wrong is committed against an individual by a law enforcement officer, such as battery or false imprisonment, under existing laws you have the right to sue. Violation of SB 627 would also be considered a civil damage and you could be entitled to a minimum of $10,000, according to Senator Weiner.
These laws will also help keep track of incidents where these violations occur.
“ If somebody is wearing a mask, if someone's not identifying themselves and we issue a misdemeanor, then we will then have the ability to track as these cases are occurring across the state,” said Senator Pérez.
“It will be a misdemeanor if they are wearing a mask. And also, if they are not identifying themselves, then we're going to have to litigate that with the federal government,” says Senator Pérez.
There is a heated debate around the constitutionality of these laws. And the law can be confusing. The Supremacy Clause in the U.S. Constitution grants the federal government supreme authority over the states. It is likely that a federal immigration agent will be charged, the charge will be contested, and then it will proceed to court.
“It means that the states can't regulate the federal government in a way that unduly interferes with federal activity,” says Dean Erwin Chemerinsky of UC Berkeley Law.
“And the key question here is: would it unduly interfere with the ability of the federal government to carry out its functions, to prevent ICE agents from wearing masks? Federal agents, like from ICE or the FBI, have to stop at stop signs or stop at red lights, unless it would interfere with their ability to carry out their functions,” Chemerinsky says.
The federal government would have to prove that federal immigration agents need to wear masks to carry out their law enforcement duties, which creates the basis to make the laws constitutional, according to Chemerinsky.
SB 627 will go into effect January 1, 2026, and requires law enforcement agencies operating in California to create a written policy that would limit the use of face coverings by July 1, 2026. SB 805 went into immediate effect. SB 805 goes into effect on January 1, 2026, and requires law enforcement agencies operating within California to publicly post a policy on visible identification.
L.A. TACO reached out to the Los Angeles Police Department, Los Angeles Sheriff Department, and California Highway Patrol for comment on how their agencies plan on enforcing these state laws within their department and if they intend to direct their officers to cite federal immigration agents if they come across them not in compliance with state laws.
“The Sheriff’s Department will work with our attorneys to evaluate the new law,” the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department said in a statement. A representative referred L.A. TACO to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for more details.
“While the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors does not have the authority to direct the actions of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, as the Sheriff is an independently elected official, the Board does play a critical supervision and oversight role. To that end, I am closely monitoring how the Sheriff’s Department plans to comply with these new state laws, although we recognize there are questions regarding whether these laws can be applied to federal agents,” Supervisor Solis told L.A. TACO in a statement.
“I fully expect our Sheriff’s Department to abide by state law and continue to require that their deputies identify themselves. As for holding ICE accountable to the same basic standards, we are closely watching the legal fight that is just ramping up over this new state law,” Supervisor Hahn told L.A. TACO in a statement.
L.A. TACO did not receive a comment from California Highway Patrol.
Los Angeles Police Department did not provide comment to L.A. TACO, following several requests for comment.
The Department of Homeland Security and acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli have both said that federal immigration agents will not be following the new state laws.
“To be clear: We will NOT comply with Gavin Newsom’s unconstitutional mask ban,” said the Department of Homeland Security in a comment on X last Monday.
“Passing an anti-law enforcement bill is dangerous and prioritizes criminal aliens over law-abiding citizens. Every ICE officer clearly identifies themselves and wears a visible badge,” an ICE Spokesperson told L.A. TACO in statement.
Amongst the hundreds of verified federal immigration enforcement operations and sightings that L.A. TACO has been able to identify, there have been situations where it is difficult to identify what agency is involved because there are no agency insignias.
In some instances agents were not wearing tactical vests at all. Federal immigration agents staged in the parking lot of Anaheim Plaza with no visible agency identifiers. L.A. TACO has documented hundreds of incidents where federal immigration agents are wearing masks. There have been several incidents of people impersonating federal immigration agents.
L.A. TACO reached out to acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for this article and was referred to his previous statements on the legislation.
"We're not going to follow it," Essayli told KCAL News. "The State of California has no jurisdiction to regulate anything that we do in the federal government and I've instructed our agents to disregard it.”
“All of this is hard. You're fighting back against the federal government,” Senator Weiner told L.A. TACO. “None of it is easy, straightforward. I'm not gonna sit here and, you know, try to convince people that this is gonna be super simple to enforce.”
