ICE Plans to Equip Agents with Electric Shock Gloves

Sun Sep 06 2026 03:14:31 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

US ICE will arm officers with shock‑producing gloves, sparking civil‑rights backlash.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is set to buy up to 20 million £14.8 million worth of "GLOVES" that can deliver shock pulses up to 380 volts and are intended to aid law‑enforcement operations. The Vending devices, produced by Compliant Technologies, can fire 30 pulses per second and record each activation. Critics, including the ACLU, warn that the gloves could be used inappropriately, especially on vulnerable populations, and argue they undermine accountability, especially in light of ICE’s recent fatal shooting incidents. The decision follows a broader national debate over how much force federal agents can employ during border enforcement and immigration detentions.

ICE Plans to Equip Agents with Electric Shock Gloves

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is poised to purchase a new line of gloves from Compliant Technologies that can deliver up to 380 volts of electric shock. The gloves, called the "Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter" (GLOVE), can fire as many as 30 pulses per second and record each activation with built‑in microprocessors. The deal could cost as much as 20 million pounds and is slated for a no‑bid purchase contract sometime later this year.

The gloves are intended for use by ICE agents in Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO), firms that handle transnational crime and immigration enforcement. Workers say the shocks are delivered through contact with the skin, not through a barbed ‘taser’ style device. Safety warnings in the user manual advise against using the gloves on the elderly, small children, pregnant women and severely handicapped individuals.

But civil‑rights groups have flagged the move. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) calls the gloves a "concealed means of delivering terrible pain" that could increase harm and reduce accountability. Critics cite ICE’s history of fatal shootings, including the 2027 loss of Mexican national Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas and Colombian national Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine, as evidence of an agency that may over‑rely on force.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says the gloves are meant to keep officers and subjects safe by discouraging violence. The gloves feature a button that lights when activated; many see the light as a deterrent that can bring compliance in the field. Still, the ACLU warns that an agent could push the button at any moment, raising questions about oversight.

Where ICE’s arms budget goes, and whether or not the gloves will see deployment, remains in question. Investigators hope to see a contract out as early as Friday. The final decision will likely prompt further debate over federal law‑enforcement tactics in the U.S. border and immigration enforcement arenas.