The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plans to provide Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers with specialised "conductive distraction and de-escalation devices," known as G.L.O.V.E, costing between $10m and £20m (£7.4m to £14.8m), according to a notice published on Monday. The gloves, which deliver painful electric shocks when applied to bare skin, are designed to gain compliance from protesters.
Democratic backlash and expert concerns
Democratic officials, including New York Attorney General Letitia James, have slammed the plans as "cruel" and unnecessary. James said the party was "outraged" and warned that ICE officers who misuse the gloves in her state could face criminal and civil consequences. Several Democrats in Congress, including Reps. Pramila Jayapal, Maxwell Frost and Delia Ramirez, voiced opposition on social media, with Jayapal writing on X: "This won't make anyone safer and in fact just gives ICE another dangerous tool to target citizens and immigrants alike."
Experts have questioned whether agents would use the devices for reasonable law enforcement. Former ICE acting director John Sandweg said in an interview: "It's too easy for this to get misused, against a population that doesn't pose a threat." Michael Mannheimer, a law professor at Northern Kentucky University, echoed concerns about disproportionate force, asking: "Will they jump over lesser force that could be appropriate and successful to attain compliance and instead use this first?"
Violence and deaths in ICE custody
The plans come as ICE faces scrutiny over custodial deaths. A report from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) examining over 1,200 enforcement incidents across eight states in 2025 found agents regularly used violence and threats to compel obedience. The ICE custodial fatality rate reached a 22-year-high earlier this year, according to the JAMA medical journal, which found 18 immigration detainee deaths by January 19. At least 17 more people have died in custody since then.
Two people, Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Goode, both 37, were killed last year while present at peaceful anti-ICE protests. The gloves are marketed as nonlethal and safe for the heart, but a pending lawsuit alleges a 43-year-old man died in 2024 after being shocked 27 times with the gloves and 13 times by a Taser at a jail in Richmond, Kentucky. An internal investigation found two of the glove shocks lasted 45 and 99 seconds, exceeding the manufacturer's recommended 15-second limit.
Manufacturer warnings and contract details
The manufacturer warns the devices should not be used on the elderly, small children, pregnant women, or the severely handicapped. The user manual also warns against using them in response to verbal defiance, or for punishment, torture, or horseplay. The DHS notice indicated a no-bid contract solicitation could be released as early as Friday, with the contract lasting through March 31, 2027. The founder of Compliant Technologies LLC, which manufactures the gloves, declined comment.
