The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) may equip its officers with gloves that can deliver electric shocks. The agency plans to spend up to $20 million on the gloves, according to a note from the Department of Homeland Security.
The gloves can deliver up to 380 volts of electricity, according to BBC News. Civil rights groups are in clear opposition to these plans, which could cause harm to people as ICE carries out its enforcement and investigation activities. "ICE spent the last year showing this country that they are willing to disregard the law and are too quick to use force, with devastating and at times fatal consequences for citizens and noncitizens alike... Giving immigration agents a concealed means of delivering terrible pain is a recipe for more harm to the public and less accountability," said Jenn Rolnick Borchetta of the American Civil Liberties Union.
Fatalities have occurred during ICE operations, as the agency comes under pressure to meet a daily target of arrests under Trump's deportation agenda. "ICE is constantly assessing the needs of our officers in the field to ensure they have the tools and equipment necessary to safely arrest and remove criminal illegal aliens from our country," the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.
