Councilmembers fail to pass ordinance banning ICE agents from wearing face coverings

Residents surround federal and Border Patrol agents who plan their escape after an immigrant raid on Atlantic Boulevard in the city of Bell on June 19.

(Photo by Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty)

DOWNEY — A proposed ordinance that would prohibit federal immigration agents and every law enforcement officer from wearing face coverings died after city council members refused to act on the measure during their meeting on Tuesday, July 8.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has continued to conduct operations in Los Angeles and surrounding cities since early June, which have sparked widespread protests. Downey officials say the ICE activity has disrupted public safety and sparked fear within the city’s immigrant community.

The Council aimed to address the ongoing issue by considering four items: allocate funds to assist impacted families, include support for immigration reform in Downey’s legislative platform, adopt a resolution denouncing aggressive enforcement tactics, and introduce an ordinance prohibiting law enforcement officers - including federal agents - from wearing a mask or face covering when engaging with the public during the performance of their duties.

Of the four measures, the mask ordinance is the only action that would impact city law and enforcement agencies. If the ordinance were adopted, Downey would have joined a growing number of lawmakers who aim to enhance accountability and transparency of federal agents - an issue that has garnered increasing attention statewide.

Under the ordinance, all law enforcement officers at the local, state, or federal level would be prohibited from wearing a mask or face covering when carrying out their duties and they must be identifiable when engaging with the community.

City attorney John Funk acknowledged that although he had not had time to analyze the ordinance in depth, he was concerned that the law was being applied to law enforcement outside the Council’s jurisdiction.

“There has been discussion tonight, and it has been observed in the last few weeks, about the authority and jurisdiction of localities to regulate the activities of law enforcement outside of its local jurisdiction,” said Funk.

“So I think that is a subject that would be addressed and be implicated in any ordinance like this, where its provisions are intended to cover law enforcement across the board. Can I say definitively whether it could be challenged successfully? I don’t know, but at the same time, the lines are very clearly drawn as to what localities can do in terms of regulating federal law enforcement activities.”

Mayor Hector Sosa (District Two) echoed concerns that the ordinance would not be enforceable by federal immigration agents. He also expressed fears that it would affect the Downey Police Department.

“I think it’s a serious enforceability issue, and if that affects law enforcement across the board, to me, that would be a hindrance to Downey Police Department and I’m not in favor of that,” said Sosa.

Council Member Mario Trujillo (District Five) questioned the mayor, asking how prohibiting face coverings would impact the police department. He turned to Downey Police Chief Scott Loughner, who clarified that local police officers typically only wear face coverings when dealing with narcotics or during an undercover operation.

Trujillo reiterated the police chief’s earlier sentiment that if any member of the community ever feels afraid or intimidated by individuals who may be perceived as federal agents, they should contact the police department.

The Council decided not to act on item four.

A growing number of cities in Southern California have passed similar ordinances that apply to federal immigration officers.The city of Huntington Park passed a sanctuary city ordinance earlier this month, under which they will not cooperate with any immigration enforcement agency.

The Whittier City Council has come under fire from Los Angeles County supervisor Janice Hahn and state representative Linda Sanchez after voting not to pass an ordinance requiring ICE agents in Whittier to remove their face coverings and identify themselves, until a study is conducted on the impact of the immigration raids.

Budget Allocation for ICE Raid Victims

The Council initially considered allocating $100,000 from the general fund to assist residents affected by the deportations.

Under the proposal, $30,000 each would be directed to Community Legal Aid SoCal and Downey First Christian Church’s Food Helps pantry, with the remaining $40,000 reserved for future needs or to bolster the same organizations if demand exceeds resources.

Of the allocated funds to Community Legal Aid SoCal, $10,000 would provide four virtual “Know Your Rights” workshops. Two workshops would be dedicated to teaching participants about their rights. One workshop would focus on family preparation, teaching families what to do if ICE detains a loved one, and the final workshop would provide business assistance.

The city of Downey also has a “Know Your Rights” page on its website.

The remaining $20,000 was allocated to Community Legal Aid SoCal for representation. When the item was initially proposed, the Council was under the impression that the organization would provide legal representation to individuals on a case-by-case basis.

However, during the meeting, the Council was informed that the organization would not be able to provide that legal assistance.

After receiving this correction, the Council determined only $10,000 would be allocated to Community Legal Aid SoCal.

Before the Council determined how much money would be dedicated to the food pantry, Council Member Claudia M. Frometa (District Four) questioned the need for allocation and the amount of impact the ICE raids had on the Downey community.

“I want to be able to provide some assistance while also doing it in a thoughtful manner, knowing who is really impacted,” said Frometa. “We have 114,000 residents, does that mean hundreds of them have been detained? Does that mean we have hundreds of families that need help, children that don’t have their primary breadwinner in that family? The first thing would be to find out how many have been impacted thus far.”

“There’s a lot of statements that we have heard that are inflammatory. I don’t know how many, and so I keep looking at our budget and just pulling these figures. This is taxpayers dollars, and so I want my community to feel safe. I don’t want families to be suffering, but I can’t make a determination without the numbers of who’s been impacted.”

At least 12 people in Downey have been taken into custody by ICE agents, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Frometa also motioned to allocate the funding to (Downey Council) PTA H.E.L.P.S. instead of Downey First Christian Church (DFCC) Food Helps pantry. She reasoned the church received a $9,000 allocation from the community program, and “PTA H.E.L.P.S. coordinates with the most vulnerable families.”

Council member Trujillo interjected before the other council members could vote on her motion. He asked Parks and Recreation director, Jason Chacon, who oversaw the allocation of the grant to DFCC, what project the church said the grant would be used towards.

Chacon said DFCC and Desert Reign Church in Downey both received a $9,000 allocation. While DFCC listed their food pantry for the grant, they also indicated that the grant money would be used towards insurance for their vehicle and repairs for other machinery.

As a compromise, Trujillo suggested an even split of the $30,000, with DFCC receiving $15,000 and Downey Council PTA H.E.L.P.S. receiving the other $15,000.

Mayor Hector Sosa (District Two) shared a third option, where $15,000 would be allocated to the food pantries instead of $30,000.

The three food pantries, DFCC, Desert Reign Church, Downey Council PTA H.E.L.P.S. would split the funding, each receiving $5,000.

“I agree with councilwoman Frometa,” said Sosa. “With respect to the facts and numbers, I think it’s obvious we all on this dais collectively want to be able to help out with resources. I think we all agree on addressing the food insecurities that some of these families have been impacted by, but overall, big picture.”

The mayor said the amount of funding that is allocated to the food pantries may be adjusted after the Council learns how many people were impacted by ICE activity.

When Sosa refers to “the big picture,” he is talking about the city budget. He said the budget surplus last year was $1.3 million, but this year the surplus decreased to $144,000.

The motion passed to allocate $5,000 each to the three food pantries, and allocate $10,000 to Community Legal Aid SoCal for “Know Your Rights” workshops.

The total allocation of $25,000 is a $75,000 difference from what the Council originally intended to provide.

The item was approved unanimously by the Council.

Legislative Platform Amendment

The Council unanimously approved amending the city’s legislative platform to include support for federal immigration reform that leads to a thorough solution and offers a path to citizenship.

There was no further discussion on the item.

According to the agenda, after the item was approved, the updated legislative platform and advocacy letters were sent to Downey’s congressional representatives in the House and Senate to highlight the City’s support for comprehensive immigration reform.

Resolution on Federal Actions

Under the proposed resolution, the Council expressed its disdain for how ICE is conducting its operations in Downey.

The resolution acknowledges that the agency’s “aggressive tactics “have disrupted public safety and created a sense of fear in the local immigrant communities. They shared that they were aware of ICE using face coverings, plain clothes attire, unmarked vehicles, and refusing to identify themselves to the public.

Through the resolution, the Council is instructing elected representatives at the federal level to demand that ICE and all immigration enforcement officers adhere to the process and cease the use of face coverings, plainclothes attire, identity concealment, and unmarked cars.

City staff are also directed to maintain and update the “Know Your Rights” page on the city’s website, which provides links to immigration resources and includes frequently asked questions and answers about immigration enforcement.

The resolution also notes that Downey officials and the Police Department have no authority over the federal immigration enforcement law, and that federal authorities have repeatedly reminded localities not to interfere with ICE enforcement operations.

Council member Frometa elaborated on this point, citing an example of a local government official interfering with federal immigration enforcement.

“You have seen on the news the mayor of a very large city, over 3 million people, went to stop immigration enforcement, and again, we don’t receive information as to when ICE is in our city now because of localities wanting to interfere and local electeds wanting to interfere,” said Frometa. “I think it’s important for communities and for our community residents to understand why we’re here, and we’re here because we are a sanctuary state. Our governor has the power to undo that sanctuary policy that was created in 2018. If that wasn’t the case, ICE would not be coming into our communities the way they have been.”

Frometa said the resolution would not change how ICE is operating because that action needs to be taken at the federal level. She reiterated that the city council does not have authority over federal Immigration enforcement, and she feels ICE operations will change if California stops being a sanctuary state.

Council member Trujillo immediately responded to Frometa, sharing his disagreement with her stance and accusing her of supporting the ICE raids.

“You (Frometa) keep saying that we don’t have jurisdiction over federal immigration enforcement, and that’s true, but what we do have is a responsibility to the residents of the city to protect them,” said Trujillo. “I’ve said it before, silence is complicity. This Council has not spoken. You seem to agree that these raids are okay.”

“We have not spoken about the fact that we are failing to protect individuals who believe there are kidnappings going on, and I tend to agree with them. At minimum, there’s violation of the Constitution up and down that I’ve seen in videos. For us to not say anything, I think, is a derelict of our duties.”

Frometa defended herself, arguing that her disagreement was not with the resolution, but with the ordinance in item four.

The resolution passed with a unanimous vote from the Council.