VIDEO: ICE plans to buy electric shock gloves, legalists are concerned

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to spend $10 million to $20 million by March on electric-shock-capable gloves for officers and agents, according to a Department of Homeland Security notice published Monday.

CBS News reported that the devices, described as "conductive distraction and de-escalation devices," can deliver painful electric shocks intended to gain compliance from combative individuals. The DHS notice said a solicitation for a no-bid contract could be published as early as Friday.

The devices are known as G.L.O.V.E., short for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter, and are manufactured by Compliant Technologies LLC of Lexington, Kentucky, CBS reported. The company says the gloves function as normal patrol gloves until officers press a switch and must touch skin directly to deliver a pain stimulus.

DHS told The Associated Press on Tuesday that it was working on a response to an inquiry and offered no immediate comment. Jeff Niklaus, founder and CEO of Compliant Technologies, told the AP: "Unfortunately, we are unable to speak on this subject."

The planned purchases come as ICE expands its crackdown on people accused of being in the U.S. illegally, amid White House pressure to arrest 2,000 people per day, CBS reported. The agency has drawn scrutiny for tactics during the arrest surge, including attempted vehicle stops in Maine and Texas last month that ended with ICE agents fatally shooting two immigrants. Jenn Rolnick Borchetta, deputy project director on policing at the ACLU, told the AP that the gloves could be used to deliver electric shocks "with the slight push of a button."

CBS reported that supporters say the devices are generally used in jail and transport situations rather than broadly on street patrol. John Peters, president of the Institute for the Prevention of In-Custody Deaths, told the AP the sensation is "like a bee sting" and said the device could shorten confrontations, but he said ICE would need robust policies and training. The manufacturer says officers must complete a course and be recertified every two years, and warns that the device should not be used as punishment, against people showing only "verbal defiance or belligerence," or on children, pregnant women, or elderly or disabled people.