San José Joins the Growing Call to Unmask ICE Agents

Elected leaders in the Bay Area’s largest city are proposing a policy that would ban federal immigration officers from concealing their identities during enforcement actions within its borders, taking a cue from lawmakers in the state and elsewhere.

San José Councilmember Peter Ortiz, who represents a large chunk of the city’s east side, said the proposed ordinance is about restoring trust.

“When federal law enforcement officers, or any law enforcement officers, are covering their face or refusing to identify themselves — like we’ve seen across the state and across the country in regard to ICE and federal immigration enforcement — it creates fear and uncertainty, especially in our immigrant communities,” Ortiz told KQED in an interview on Friday.

“I believe people, regardless of citizenship, deserve to know who’s approaching them and whether that person is a legitimate law enforcement officer, not someone impersonating them.”

The policy, which has also drawn support from Council members David Cohen, Pamela Campos and Rosemary Kamei, will be heard at the city’s Rules and Open Government Committee on Wednesday. If it finds enough support there, the ordinance could be considered by the full council in about two months, Ortiz said.

San José, which is home to nearly 1 million people, has large Asian and Latino populations, and about 40% of the city’s residents are immigrants, according to the US Census.

“I believe it’s a responsibility of this council to make sure that our immigrant community is being protected, is being represented properly, and that any sort of immigration enforcement … is done in accordance with the law and respects the human rights of all residents,” Ortiz said.

While the city has not seen Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids on the scale of the  Los Angeles County area, enforcement actions in San José earlier this year and around the Bay Area have prompted protests against the Trump administration’s aggressive escalation of tactics.

San José and Santa Clara County leaders responded by bolstering funding for legal aid and financial relief for families whose loved ones have been detained, as spiking fear of ICE roundups has kept some home from work or school.

Legislators in California, New York and Pennsylvania and supervisors in Los Angeles County are among some of the electeds pushing similar policies sometimes referred to as “No Secret Police” laws, even as the legal landscape around such rules is murky.

San José City Attorney Nora Frimann said it’s unclear whether local or state laws will hold any sway over federal agents or officers, be they from ICE, Border Patrol, or another agency.

“But it is also significantly troubling to many in the community that masking and other efforts to hide identity can endanger residents, and not allow our residents to know if legitimate law enforcement is occurring and by which agency or branch of government,” Frimann said in an email.

A spokesperson for ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment about San José’s proposal. The agency has previously told KQED in response to similar legislation proposed by state Sens. Scott Weiner, D-San Francisco, and Jesse Arreguín, D-Berkeley,  that officers wear masks and use other methods to avoid identification to prevent “doxxing,” or the publishing of someone’s personal information online to publicly shame or harass them.

Ortiz acknowledged his policy proposal could result in a courtroom fight.

“It may come to a legal argument that we may have to support in partnership with the state of California and other jurisdictions, but I believe that San José has a moral obligation to lead that conversation and to lead in that battle for our immigrant community,” he said.

If the proposal makes it to the full council, there will likely be a discussion of the merits of the policy and any legal implications, Frimann said.