According to a report by The Guardian on August 12, as announced by the US Department of Homeland Security on Monday, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) plans to invest up to $20 million (about 135 million RMB) in purchasing thousands of gloves with pain-relieving electric shocks for its officers and agents by March next year.
This device is named “Glove” and is manufactured by Compliant Technologies LLC, located in Lexington, Kentucky, USA.
According to the manufacturer, “the discomfort caused by electric shocks can usually make people submit within three seconds, without leaving burns, marks, or scars.” The company markets this device as “a humane and discreet solution that can alleviate conflicts in various situations faced by our law enforcement officers.”
This type of glove has been used in some prisons and other places in the United States before.
Compliant Technologies stated that these gloves function just like ordinary patrol gloves. It is only when officers press a switch to activate the electric shock mode that the gloves become active. According to the company, the gloves must be in direct contact with human skin to deliver a painful stimulus, which generally helps officers quickly gain compliance from their targets.
"The feeling is instantaneous and sharp, it distracts you. It's like being stung by a bee."
He praised the device: "If officers face any form of resistance from the other party, this is undoubtedly an effective tool."
Peters believes that this procurement plan by ICE is likely to be the largest order the company has received to date. He also imagines that ICE officers could use these gloves to remove those who do not cooperate from vehicles or homes, or to escort them into and out of detention facilities.
Human rights advocates were shocked by this. They said that ICE has already been widely criticized for using force and lacking supervision when implementing immigration suppression measures; now, having these gloves would only make the problem worse.
The Deputy Director of the Policing Project for the American Civil Liberties Union, Jane Rolnick Borquetta, told The Associated Press that she questions the use of such equipment in civil immigration enforcement.
She said: “In the past year, ICE has shown this country that they use force too frequently. Now, they can release electric shocks simply by pressing a button, and probably no one will see them doing it.”
The manufacturer warns that this device should not be used for punitive purposes, nor should it be used on individuals who merely exhibit "verbal provocation or hostility." It should also not be used on high-risk groups, such as children, pregnant women, the elderly, or people with disabilities.
Compliance Technologies company founder and chief executive officer Jeff Nicklaus wrote in an email: "We regret that we are unable to comment on the matter."
