US Division of Homeland Safety is anticipated to purchase as much as $20m in gloves amid criticism of the president’s immigration crackdown.
Revealed On 12 Aug 2026
The administration of United States President Donald Trump is planning to spend tens of tens of millions of {dollars} to equip federal immigration brokers with gloves able to delivering electrical shocks.
In keeping with a notice posted on Monday, the Division of Homeland Safety has estimated it can make investments between $10m and $20m in such gloves by the top of March 2027.
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The gadgets are often called the CT-G5 G.L.O.V.E., an acronym that stands for “Generate Low Output Voltage Emitter”. They’re presently utilized by some jails and police departments.
Their producer, Compliant Applied sciences, says the gloves are used to “shortly distract with small uncomfortable electrical pulses” when utilized to an individual’s pores and skin. The Division of Homeland Safety indicated they’d be used for “distraction and de-escalation”.
A user manual states the gloves can ship a most of 380 volts, which “inhibits/distracts the topic from performing coordinated muscle motion”.
The deliberate buy has already sparked a backlash amongst rights advocates, who concern the gloves will likely be used to hurt protesters and immigrants within the division’s custody.
The Division of Homeland Safety oversees an array of companies, together with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which has led Trump’s marketing campaign of mass deportation.
Monday’s announcement specified that ICE has a requirement to make the acquisition and distribute the gloves to brokers inside Enforcement and Removing Operations, one among its subsidiaries, and Homeland Safety Investigations.
However ICE has confronted growing criticism for its techniques, together with accusations of racial profiling and extreme drive.
Not less than 4 individuals have been shot dead throughout encounters with ICE brokers for the reason that begin of this yr. Dozens more have died in ICE custody.
On Wednesday, the Nationwide Immigration Legislation Middle (NILC) issued a press release criticising the anticipated glove buy, calling it a path to additional violence towards weak communities.
It additionally famous that, in June, the Republican-led Congress handed tens of billions of {dollars} in ICE spending as a part of the Safe America Act.
“This can be a rogue company with an $80 billion slush fund that enables them to concoct and fund new methods to go to cruelty upon our communities,” NILC President Kica Mantos mentioned within the assertion. “Arming poorly skilled brokers with electrical shock gloves to inflict ache on our neighbors is disgusting and barbaric.”
The Division of Homeland Safety provided no fast response to The Related Press information company, one of many first information retailers to report on the story.
The founder and CEO of Compliant, Jeff Niklaus, informed the publication in an e mail, “Sadly, we’re unable to talk on this topic.”
Compliant has argued previously that its gadgets are “humane” and don’t trigger harm.
“The know-how is secure because it doesn’t penetrate the topic’s physique, whereas additionally permitting different officers to seize the person being stimulated with no concern of suggestions into their our bodies,” the producer says on its website.
Nonetheless, Compliant recommends avoiding use of the system on “larger danger” people, together with the aged, young children, pregnant individuals and people with extreme disabilities. Officers should additionally full a course to make use of the gloves and be recertified each two years, in keeping with the corporate.
The discover, listed as a no-bid contract, might be revealed by Friday.
