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ICE Awards $16.7M Contract for Shock Gloves · GNN Daily Breaking News

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  Speaker 1: The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency has awarded a $ 16. 7
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  Speaker 1: million contract to Kentucky-based Compliant Technologies for the purchase of
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  Speaker 1: thousands of electric shock gloves, sparking immediate controversy among lawmakers
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  Speaker 1: and human rights groups. According to procurement documents, ICE will
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  Speaker 1: acquire 6,000 pairs of GLOV units, devices that function as
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  Speaker 1: ordinary patrol gloves until activated. at which point they deliver
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  Speaker 1: painful electrical shocks upon contact. The gloves are marketed as
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  Speaker 1: conductive distraction and de-escalation devices, intended to give officers a
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  Speaker 1: non-lethal option during arrests, detainee transport, or disturbances inside detention facilities.
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  Speaker 1: ICE officials argue the gloves will reduce reliance on firearms
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  Speaker 1: and provide a lower-impact tool for controlling detainees. They described
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  Speaker 1: the technology as filling a gap between empty-hand tactics and
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  Speaker 1: more severe force options. The agency insists the gloves will
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  Speaker 1: help officers de-escalate tense situations before violence escalates. Critics, however,
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  Speaker 1: warn of serious risks. Civil liberties groups, including the ACLU,
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  Speaker 1: have condemned the contract, calling the gloves a concealed means
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  Speaker 1: of delivering terrible pain that could easily be abused. Democratic lawmakers,
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  Speaker 1: led by Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, have urged ICE to
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  Speaker 1: cancel the plan, citing past misuse of force in detention
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  Speaker 1: centers and warning that the gloves could worsen racial profiling
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  Speaker 1: and erode accountability. The manufacturers own manual cautions against use
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  Speaker 1: on vulnerable populations such as the elderly, pregnant women, children,
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  Speaker 1: or individuals with severe disabilities. Yet ICE has not clarified
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  Speaker 1: how safeguards will be enforced. The controversy comes amid heightened
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  Speaker 1: scrutiny of ICE, following reports of over 50 deaths in
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  Speaker 1: custody since Trump took office and several fatal shootings earlier
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  Speaker 1: this year. The contract also reflects the administration's broader hardline
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  Speaker 1: immigration crackdown, which has expanded ICE's enforcement powers and introduced
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  Speaker 1: new technologies into detention operations. While some local jails and
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  Speaker 1: police departments have already deployed the gloves, This marks the
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  Speaker 1: first large-scale federal purchase. For supporters, the gloves represent a
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  Speaker 1: non-lethal alternative that could prevent escalation. For opponents, they symbolize
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  Speaker 1: a dangerous expansion of enforcement tools that may increase abuse
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  Speaker 1: rather than reduce it. As the debate intensifies, the $ 16. 7
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  Speaker 1: million contract has become a flashpoint in the ongoing struggle
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  Speaker 1: over immigration policy, civil liberties, and the limits of state power.