A Kentucky firm has landed a $16.7 million sole-source agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to supply thousands of electric-shock gloves, a tool the agency frames as a way to subdue uncooperative individuals without escalating to firearms. The deal, inked Wednesday with Compliant Technologies LLC and listed the following day on a federal procurement site, covers 6,000 pairs of the device, per CBS News.
Marketed as the G.L.O.V.E. (Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter), the product resembles standard patrol gear until an officer switches on its “electrical mode.” At that point, skin-to-skin contact is required to administer a jolt meant to compel obedience. ICE’s contract paperwork characterizes the items as “conductive distraction and de-escalation devices,” positioning them as a less severe option for scenarios involving arrests, prisoner transfers, or unrest near detention centers. The agency’s justification notes the gloves could come into play when someone is “actively or passively resisting” and swift control is necessary.
Priced at $2,495 per unit, the six-month arrangement bundles the gloves with supporting gear and training services. ICE contends the technology cuts down on physical grappling and offers an alternative to lethal force when encounters turn hazardous. In its own words from the procurement file: “ICE does not currently have an empty hand use of force device to provide to the field amidst unprecedented levels of threats and violence against ICE officers and agents to help ensure they can de-escalate tense situations before they turn violent.”
While ICE maintains the gloves will operate within established use-of-force protocols, training mandates, and accountability measures, the contract documents stop short of spelling out those specifics. Guidance from Compliant Technologies’ manual advises operators to “always give the subject(s) a reasonable opportunity to comply before force is used,” recommends limiting shocks to 15 seconds unless the individual escalates or poses a danger, and cautions against deploying the device as punishment or on vulnerable populations such as the elderly, pregnant women, young children, or “the severely handicapped.”
The move has sparked backlash from Democratic lawmakers and advocacy groups worried about misuse and insufficient oversight. On Thursday, Senator Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, joined by 15 other Democratic senators, pressed ICE to scrap the purchase, arguing that a shock-delivering tool in civil immigration contexts raises red flags about proportionality, medical risks, constitutional protections, and accountability. Their letter asserted that “a device capable of delivering an electrical shock through direct contact with an individual presents substantial risks if deployed during civil arrests,” and called on the agency to reveal its operational rules, safety measures, and review procedures.
Homeland Security officials fired back, framing the criticism as an attack on officer safety. A DHS representative told CBS News the Democratic objections were “despicable and a deliberate attempt to undermine and endanger our officers.” The spokesperson went on to say ICE continually evaluates field needs to equip personnel for safely apprehending and deporting criminal undocumented immigrants, with each decision subject to thorough review against applicable law enforcement standards. The official also emphasized that officers undergo extensive de-escalation training.
This contract signals a notable step up for the glove technology, previously confined mostly to municipal police forces and correctional facilities. Detractors worry the new capability could normalize pain-infliction during routine immigration stops, with force applied largely out of public view. ICE’s use-of-force record has already faced scrutiny following agent-involved shootings during attempted traffic stops in Maine and Texas last month, as reported by CBS News.
Compliant Technologies declined to comment for the original report.