A federal judge has issued an injunction blocking Virginia from enforcing its law that sought to bar ICE and other federal immigration agents from wearing masks while conducting operations in the state.
Judge Robert E. Payne also blocked part of the law that ordered federal officers to wear identifying information so their activities could be tracked.
Judge Payne said the state law violates federal immunity because it “directly regulates the conduct of federal law enforcement.”
“There is evidence that enforcement of the Mask/Identity statute would expose federal employees to real risk of physical harm in, and in connection with, the discharge of their duties when enforcing federal immigration law and policy,” he wrote.
He promised a more thorough opinion to come, but issued the order Tuesday, just ahead of the law’s effective date.
Virginia, with its political branches now controlled by Democrats, joined the flood of blue states looking to confront President Trump and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement with an anti-masking law.
A federal judge had previously blocked California’s version.
Lawsuits are also pending against ICE masking laws in New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia.
ICE officials have said they wished that masks weren’t necessary but said with anti-ICE sentiment rampant, officers feel the need to shield their identities to protect themselves and their families.
Some Democratic officials have said the masks put the agency in the same category as Nazi secret police.
The laws, however, have met resistance from judges who say they are an unconstitutional attempt to regulate federal agents.
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