Michigan Democrats unveil bill to criminalize masked ICE agents

By: Derek Vanbuskirk

Michigan House Democrats introduced legislation Thursday to criminalize the concealing of the identities of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and other officers while on duty.

If signed into law, it would apply to federal, state, and local law enforcement across the state, according to the legislation. There will be exceptions for the use of masks for undercover operations, protection against disease, and specific dangerous situations. If violated, officers could face up to 90 days in jail and up to a $1,000 fine.

Democratic Michigan State Rep. Betsy Coffia announced the bill at a July 25 press conference alongside Democratic State Reps. Noah Arbit, Carrie Rheingans, Donavan McKinney, and Erin Byrnes.

“Those who protect and serve our community should not do so behind a concealed identity,” Coffia said.

“In recent months, we’ve heard alarming reports of masked individuals arriving in unmarked cars, jumping out with rifles to detain people. To the average person, it looks like a violent kidnapping,” Coffia said, comparing the optics to that of “secret police in authoritarian regimes.”

Arbit claimed masked officers may increase crime as it “gives license to anyone who is not part of the state to also commit violence.”

“This shreds the rule of law, and that is why the Trump Administration and the Republican Party are the most pro-crime administration and political party that we have ever seen,” he continued.

Rheingans said she is responding to her community and argued that the legislation would go a long way toward rebuilding trust.  “No one serving the public should be allowed to hide their face from the public,” Rheingans said.

#JusticeNeedsNoMask – I am proud to co-sponsor #Michigan HB4760 to ban masked ICE agents. This #Gestapo needs to stop! #UnmaskICE #MiLeg #Accountability #Transparency pic.twitter.com/ypjtqLJOEj

— Rep. Carrie Rheingans (@RepRheingans) July 26, 2025

“[I]n a free society, police are accountable to the civilian power,” McKinney said. “We owe it to the people we serve — especially in communities that have long felt overpoliced and underprotected [sic] — to ensure that law enforcement officers are not shielded from identification while exercising power over the public.”

Republican Michigan State House Speaker Matt Hall said the lower chamber would not pass the legislation, Michigan Live reported. “Democrats will do everything they can to get in the way of local police and ICE, because they’ve always cared more about criminals than victims. But that ends here — this ridiculous bill is dead on arrival,” he said.

A number of ICE agents’ relatives have been targets of “doxing,” a term referring to the spread of personal information, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Agents face threats from violent gangs such as MS-13 and Tren de Aragua, an ICE official told the DCNF. The agency said assaults on its agents had gone up almost 700%.

With a Republican majority in the Michigan State House, it is unclear how likely the bill is to make its way to the Senate. Similar bills have now been introduced in California and New York, and Massachusetts.

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