Image: Law enforcement officers stand guard during a protest on June 14, 2025, in Los Angeles. While a partial win for the Trump administration, a Feb. 9 ruling by a U.S. federal court left room for California to make an ICE mask ban constitutional.  (Ethan Swope/AP Photo)

A federal court blocked enforcement of a California law barring federal and local officers from wearing masks, while finding that the state’s ban is not inherently unconstitutional — a ruling the law’s Democratic author framed as a win.

U.S. District Court Judge Christina Snyder ruled in her preliminary injunction that by excluding California law enforcement agents from its ban on masking, SB 627 likely violates a federal doctrine that prohibits state laws from discriminating against the federal government.

In response, state Sen. Scott Wiener — who wrote the original bill — immediately announced new legislation to add state law enforcement officers to the masking ban. Wiener removed state officers from SB 627 at the request of Gov. Gavin Newsom last year, but said he believes the politics have changed as public backlash has grown to President Donald Trump’s deportation push.

“This court ruling is a huge win, because the federal court ruled that California has the power to ban federal agents, including ICE, from wearing masks and that we simply have to add state police back into the law to make it enforceable,” Wiener said.

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