“Federal law enforcement agents and officers cannot and will not comply with the Challenged Laws, which are unconstitutional and recklessly disregard officer safety, public safety, and federal operational needs,” the lawsuit states.
The U.S. Department of Justice is suing the state of Maryland over a new mask ban for law enforcement officers.
According to CBS News, the lawsuit was filed earlier this week in a state district court. The defendants named in the complaint include the state, Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, Attorney General Anthony Brown, and the Maryland Police Training Standards Commission.
Under the state’s new law, federal law enforcement officers cannot wear masks while on-duty except when engaged in undercover operations. It also requires agents to present identification when working with the public.
CBS News notes that the measure was approved by state legislators in April before it was signed into law by Gov. Wes Moore in May. The rule took effect this Thursday.
“Not only are these laws illegal attempts to regulate the federal government, but, as alleged in the complaint, the laws threaten the safety of federal officers who have faced an unprecedented wave of harassment, foxing, and even violence,” the Justice Department said in a press release announcing the lawsuit. “Threatening officers with prosecution for simply protecting their identities and their families also chills the enforcement of federal law and compromises sensitive law enforcement operations.”
The lawsuit, writes The Hill, cites several recent incidents involving federal officers in Maryland, including an August case in which a Baltimore-area ICE agent and his spouse were “doxed” online.
“These Maryland state and local laws are a direct regulation of federal law enforcement operations and threaten severe consequences for officers and public safety alike,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate said. “The Federal Government, not state and local governments, gets to decide which equipment federal officers may or may not wear when performing their official duties.”
The federal government has already indicated that it will not comply with Maryland’s laws.
“Federal law enforcement agents and officers cannot and will not comply with the Challenged Laws, which are unconstitutional and recklessly disregard officer safety, public safety, and federal operational needs,” the lawsuit states.
Before the statute took effect, Maryland Attorney General Brown said he expected the rule would meet resistance—and that, if it came down to a lawsuit, the state would likely lose.
“In my view, there is a high likelihood that a court would find that application of SB 1’s face-covering prohibition or identification requirement to federal law enforcement would violate the Supremacy Clause, and specifically, the intergovernmental immunity doctrine, because to do so would directly regulate the federal government,” Brown wrote in a May 12 letter to Gov. Moore.
Sources
Justice Department files complaint against Maryland over mask ban for federal officers
Justice Department sues Maryland over federal agent mask ban
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