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LOS ANGELES () — Mayor Karen Bass signed a new executive directive on Tuesday aimed at restricting federal immigration enforcement operations on city-owned property, though questions remain on how the city will enforce the rules.
The move comes eight months after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity increased significantly across Los Angeles. Bass and other officials said the city must establish clearer boundaries between city operations and federal immigration actions.
At a City Hall event on Tuesday, Bass signed Executive Directive No. 17, which seeks to curb the use of city-owned properties as staging areas for federal immigration enforcement. The order also requires Los Angeles Police Department officers who respond to an immigration enforcement scene to activate their body-worn cameras and preserve the video.
“What we have seen in all of our districts is ICE go and attempt to stage at various properties, public or private,” Bass said. “It instructs LAPD officers to preserve all evidence related to immigration enforcement so that it can be reported.”
The order comes as Homeland Security officials testified before a House committee overseeing federal funding. Congressional Democrats are pushing for reforms to ICE, including new use-of-force standards and a ban on agents wearing masks.
“Will you commit to immediately unmasking your agents and having them wear standard uniforms with identification?” Rep. Tim Kennedy of New York asked.
“No,” Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons replied.
The judge said the law’s exemption for state police discriminates against federal agents, though it could be rewritten without the exemption.
The mayor’s order also addresses a state law barring law enforcement officers from wearing masks. A federal judge ruled on Monday that the state cannot enforce that law because it discriminates against federal agents.
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell previously said the department would not enforce the mask ban, citing officer safety concerns and the potential for conflict between armed agencies.
It’s a California law, federal law enforcement officers are banned from wearing masks while on duty, but the Los Angeles Police Department doesn’t plan to enforce it.
The mayor said she has discussed the matter with McDonnell.
“He is fully aware of the executive directive,” Bass said. “I’ve also talked to him and raised concerns about the masking law, and to me, of course, the Los Angeles Police Department is going to enforce the law. We’ll wait and see what happens in the courts. I will have continued conversations with him.”
The order gives city agencies 15 days to provide an outline of city properties and plans for implementing the new restrictions. In other cities where similar orders have been passed, the measures have not deterred ICE operations.
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