ICE Plans $10-20M Purchase of Electric Shock Gloves for Officers

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is preparing to outfit its officers with gloves capable of delivering electric shocks to compel compliance during arrests. The agency plans to spend between $10 million and $20 million on the devices—known as the G.L.O.V.E., short for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter—by March, according to a Department of Homeland Security notice published this week. The gloves are manufactured by Compliant Technologies LLC, a Kentucky-based company, and have already seen limited use in some jails and police departments across the country.

The devices function as ordinary patrol gloves until an officer activates an electrical mode by pressing a switch. When applied directly to skin, they deliver a sharp pain stimulus designed to produce quick compliance, typically within seconds. John Peters, president of the Institute for the Prevention of In-Custody Deaths who has studied the technology, described the sensation as immediate and cutting—"like a bee sting." He suggested the gloves could prove useful for removing uncooperative individuals from vehicles, homes, and detention facilities, and noted they might particularly benefit smaller, older, or physically weaker officers by enabling faster takedowns and shorter confrontations. Peters believes ICE's planned purchase would likely be the largest order the manufacturer has received to date.

Compliant Technologies stipulates that the devices should not be used as punishment, against people showing only verbal defiance, or on vulnerable populations including children, pregnant women, elderly people, or those with disabilities. The manufacturer requires officers to complete a training course and undergo recertification every two years. Yet civil rights organizations have raised sharp objections to the plan. Jenn Rolnick Borchetta, deputy project director on policing at the American Civil Liberties Union, expressed skepticism that ICE would deploy the technology responsibly. She pointed to the agency's recent record during its intensified immigration enforcement operations and warned that electric shocks could be administered with minimal visibility or warning to the person being shocked. "ICE spent the last year showing this country they are too quick to use force," she said. "Now they will be able to deploy electric shocks with the slight push of a button that maybe nobody else can see them do."

The timing of the purchase coincides with a significant escalation in ICE enforcement activity. The agency is under pressure from the White House to arrest approximately 2,000 people per day as part of an expanded crackdown on undocumented immigration. This surge has already drawn scrutiny over aggressive tactics. Last month, attempted vehicle stops in Maine and Texas resulted in shootings, and in both cases the agents involved were not wearing body cameras—a gap DHS said it would address by ensuring all ICE arrest teams have at least one officer equipped with a camera going forward.

Peters acknowledged that some employees would likely misuse the devices, as occurs with other policing technologies, but expressed confidence they are unlikely to cause serious injury if deployed as intended. He emphasized the importance of robust policies and training protocols. Civil rights advocates, however, questioned whether ICE would enforce such safeguards adequately, particularly given the agency's pattern of force during recent operations. The question of whether these gloves will be used as a tool of last resort or as a casual instrument of control remains unresolved as the purchase moves forward.