AP Exclusive: ICE plans to equip officers with electric shock gloves

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is reportedly moving forward with plans to equip its officers with electric shock gloves, according to an Associated Press exclusive. The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, published a bid on its website for up to $20 million worth of CT-G5 G.L.O.V.E. (Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter) devices, with the aim of acquiring thousands by March. The gloves, manufactured by Compliant Technologies LLC, are designed to deliver an electric current upon direct skin contact to subdue combative individuals within seconds, and are already in use by some U.S. prisons and police departments.

While Compliant Technologies asserts the device effectively gains compliance without causing burns or scars, its manual cautions against use for torture or punishment, and specifies it should not be applied to children, pregnant women, the elderly, or individuals with severe disabilities. However, civil rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), have voiced significant alarm over the plan. They argue that ICE officers, who have faced prior scrutiny for their use of force and lack of oversight, cannot be trusted to deploy these devices appropriately, raising concerns about potential misuse and an escalation of force in immigration enforcement.