U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is planning to buy thousands of gloves capable of delivering painful electric shocks during encounters with detainees and others, according to an Associated Press report.
A Department of Homeland Security notice says ICE could spend as much as $20 million on the devices by March. The agency is considering a no-bid contract for gloves manufactured by Kentucky-based Compliant Technologies. Known as the G.L.O.V.E.—short for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter—the equipment operates like a normal patrol glove until an officer activates its electrical mode and places it directly against a person’s skin.
The manufacturer describes the glove as a less-lethal tool intended to help officers gain control of a physically resistant person within seconds. Its guidance says the device should not be used as punishment, in response to verbal defiance alone, or against vulnerable groups including children, pregnant women, older adults and people with disabilities. Officers must complete training and receive recertification every two years.
Civil-rights advocates are raising concerns about accountability and possible misuse. The American Civil Liberties Union told the AP that the discreet activation mechanism could allow officers to inflict pain with little warning or public visibility, especially amid continuing scrutiny of ICE’s use-of-force practices.
DHS had not provided the AP with a detailed response when the plan was reported. The proposed purchase comes days after ICE said it expects to equip all field officers with body cameras by the end of August.
