ICE plans $20M purchase of electric shock gloves to gain compliance

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers have prepared to outfit agents with gloves that deliver electric shocks intended to gain compliance from combative individuals, according to official notices.

ICE plans to spend up to $20 million to purchase thousands of "conductive distraction and de-escalation devices" for officers and agents by March, according to a notice published on Monday by the US Department of Homeland Security.

The devices are known as the G.L.O.V.E., which stands for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter, and are manufactured by Compliant Technologies LLC of Lexington, Kentucky.

They have been used in recent years by some jails and police departments.

Civil rights concerns

Civil rights advocates expressed alarm at the plan, saying ICE officers already face criticism for their use of force with little oversight.

Compliant Technologies says the devices function as a normal pair of patrol gloves until officers press a switch to activate their electrical mode.

The gloves must be applied directly to someone's skin to deliver a pain stimulus that typically helps an officer gain compliance within seconds, according to the company.

"It's immediate and sharp, and it will distract you. I call it like a bee sting," said John Peters, president of the Institute for the Prevention of In-Custody Deaths, who is studying how the device has been used.

"If the officer is getting any type of resistance from the person, this is certainly an effective tool."

Peters said he believed ICE's planned purchase would likely be the largest from the company to date.

He said he could envision ICE officers using the gloves to help remove uncooperative subjects from cars and houses and in and out of detention facilities.

Accountability debate

The manufacturer warns the device should not be misused.

Jenn Rolnick Borchetta, deputy project director on policing at the American Civil Liberties Union, said the public should have no confidence that ICE officers will use the devices appropriately.

She questioned why the devices would be necessary for civil immigration enforcement and noted those getting shocked might have no advance warning.

"Introducing gloves that can so easily be used to deliver terrible pain in encounters is a recipe for harm to the public."

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Source: TRT