Arizona AG calls out masked ICE agents: ‘Real lawmen don’t wear masks’

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes recently joined other Democratic state leaders in calling out immigration and federal agents for refusing to identify and unmask themselves when detaining individuals suspected of unauthorized immigration status.

During a news conference on Tuesday, Mayes demanded Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents remove their masks when conducting operations in Arizona.

Mayes was critical of the behavior that has become customary as ICE, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) raids take place across the country, primarily in larger, sanctuary cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Since January 20, ICE operations have been characterized by masked agents wearing vests with the words “POLICE” or “HSI,” as part of the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agency, traveling in unmarked vehicles.

While not on the same scale, Phoenix organizers have also seen immigration enforcement operations take place outside immigration court, in commercial parking lots, at gas stations and in residential areas across the Valley.

In Arizona, detentions have increased by about 113%, resulting in over 2,900 arrests since Jan. 20, a New York Times analysis shows.

The attorney general’s demand mirrors that made by other Democratic states, like California and Washington, and it comes on the heels of a recent U.S. Senate bill that aims to legally enforce it.

The “VISIBLE Act”, introduced on Tuesday by Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Sen. Corey Booker (D-NJ), would require any state or federal agents conducting immigration enforcement operations to identify themselves by wearing their agency name, displaying their uncovered name or badge number and limit the use of face coverings that are non-medical.

The lack of transparency exhibited by agents “endangers public safety by causing confusion, fear, and mistrust, especially in communities already subjected to heightened immigration scrutiny,” Padilla said in a press release, adding that “It also increases risks for law enforcement personnel by creating uncertainty in high-stress situations, particularly when individuals cannot distinguish real officers from impersonators.”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has defended the practice, saying agents must mask in order to protect their identity as they have been subject to doxxing.

“When our heroic law enforcement officers conduct operations, they clearly identify themselves as police while wearing masks to protect themselves from being targeted,” DHS wrote in a May 10 post on X.

Mayes, however, disagreed, saying, “real lawmen and women don’t wear masks,” criticizing their behavior and comparing it unfavorably to how local and state law enforcement conduct themselves.

“Law enforcement across the state of Arizona does their jobs honorably,” Mayes said. “They do their jobs professionally. They do their jobs every day without masking themselves and hiding who they are.”