Oversight Vanishes If Police Hide Identity

As a young LAPD recruit, the first thing I learned when I pinned on a badge was simple but profound: power must always be visible and accountable. A nameplate, a badge number, an agency insignia – those aren’t just pieces of metal and cloth. They’re promises that those who wield the authority of the state can be identified, questioned and held responsible for their actions.

That’s why California’s new law – taking effect on Jan. 1, 2026 – should be welcomed by anyone in Long Beach who values the rule of law. It will make it a misdemeanor for any law enforcement officer – federal or local – to conceal their identity with a mask during enforcement actions in public spaces such as schools, hospitals, or places of worship. The goal is straightforward: when government agents act in the name of the people, the people have a right to know who they are.

This isn’t just a matter of theory or Sacramento politics. As I reported in the companion news piece the law was designed with real communities like ours in mind – schools where children should feel safe, hospitals where patients should never fear armed strangers, and city streets where public trust should never hang on a masked man’s word.

Yet, predictably, critics are already shouting “political theater.” Some insist that “federal law trumps state law.” Others argue that agents have a “right” to wear masks – and that if they’re arresting undocumented people, “who cares?”

They’re wrong. And worse – they’re betraying a fundamental misunderstanding of what policing in a democracy is supposed to look like.

Policing Is Not Supposed to Look Like a Kidnapping

The line between a lawful arrest and an abduction is thinner than most people realize. What separates them is the ability of the public to identify who is acting under color of law. When that ability is removed, trust collapses – and fear takes its place.

We’ve seen the consequences right here in Southern California. In one case, Maria Ruiz, a U.S. citizen, was detained by masked ICE agents outside her workplace and held without cause for three days. In another, federal officers in tactical gear stormed a San Diego courthouse, seizing a man leaving a family law hearing and terrifying bystanders. In the Central Valley, masked agents entered an emergency room and detained two patients seeking care.

When the public can’t tell the difference between a federal officer and a street gang in black uniforms, we’re not talking about policing anymore. We’re talking about power untethered from accountability.

What the New Law Actually Does – and Why It Matters

The new statute is neither radical nor anti-federal. It doesn’t block ICE operations, prevent arrests, or interfere with warrants. It simply says that those executing the power of the state must do so without hiding their identity – with clear exceptions for undercover work or imminent safety threats.

That’s squarely within California’s constitutional authority. No federal statute requires masks. In fact, federal regulations already require agents to identify themselves when making arrests. Far from conflicting with federal law, California’s statute reinforces the very principles federal law is supposed to uphold.

The Supreme Court has long upheld state laws that are neutral, generally applicable, and incidentally affect federal operations. This one does exactly that – and it applies equally to every officer with a badge.

The “Doxing” Excuse Doesn’t Hold Up

ICE often claims masks protect agents from being “doxed.” But officers have faced the risk of retaliation for over a century – and they’ve managed it with training, security protocols and laws against harassment, not anonymity.

Most doxing happens when agencies hide misconduct and refuse accountability. Masking officers doesn’t prevent those situations – it enables them. And again, the new law already allows exceptions when safety is truly at risk.

Professionalism Doesn’t Stop at the Federal Courthouse

As a former LAPD commander, I would never have allowed my detectives to serve a warrant while hiding their faces. If they’d shown up that way, they’d have been pulled from the operation before they reached the door.

Professionalism isn’t situational. It doesn’t end at the city limits or stop at ICE’s door. And it certainly doesn’t change because the person being arrested is undocumented. The standards of legitimacy and accountability are the same everywhere.

When officers hide their faces, they hide their responsibility. They erode public trust. They chill constitutional rights. And they create the conditions in which abuse thrives.

Long Beach: Be the Test Case

California has drawn a bright line – one that says state power must be visible, accountable and answerable to the people it serves. That’s not politics. That’s Policing 101.

But the next step is ours to take. Long Beach can and should be the city that leads by example – by instructing our police department, city prosecutor and local institutions to enforce this law the moment it takes effect. Doing so would send a powerful message: that this community stands on the side of transparency, legality and public trust.

We can’t stop federal agents from coming into our city. But we can insist they operate by the same standards of accountability we demand from every officer sworn to uphold the law.

Stephen Downing is a resident of Long Beach and a retired LAPD deputy chief. He writes on policing, civil liberties and the rule of law in Exposing the Con, Defending Democracy. You can follow his work at stephendowning.substack.com.