DHS says it will not abide by California ban, invokes Supremacy Clause
The California Legislature on Monday passed a bill banning law enforcement from using shock gloves through 2030, sending the legislation to Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto. The bill was introduced by Assemblymember LaShae Sharp-Collins, D-San Diego, and targets the devices’ planned deployment by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, according to UPI.
The state-level push drew an immediate objection from the federal government. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement reported by UPI that “sanctuary politicians attempting to ban our federal law enforcement from any safety equipment is despicable and a deliberate attempt to undermine and endanger our officers.” The department added: “To be crystal clear: we will not abide by unconstitutional bans. The Supremacy Clause makes it clear that California’s sanctuary politicians do not control federal law enforcement.”
On the Assembly floor, Sharp-Collins argued for the ban, according to UPI. “Public safety technology must be proven safe and accountable before it is deployed, not after someone is killed or seriously injured,” she said. Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez, D-Los Angeles, said immigrant communities and Black and Brown Californians would be the test subjects, telling UPI: “We know that our immigrant communities, people who are Black or brown, will be the test subject for these gloves of torment. We will be that study.”
Democrats argued that the gloves could cause issues for people with health concerns such as heart problems. Sharp-Collins said the bill would not outlaw tasers or other non-lethal devices already in use by police.
Opponents of the legislation argued that tools of “less than lethal force” can potentially prevent officers from resorting to deadly force, according to UPI. Sheriff Jim Cooper of Sacramento County, a former Democratic state lawmaker, said at a press conference that his office had already spent $35,000 on the technology — 10 of the gloves, which are used individually, and 10 electric shock bands designed to stop suspects already in custody through a remote switch. The bands would also be prohibited under the bill, according to UPI.
Other California agencies have begun acquiring the devices. The Santa Monica Police Department has a few of the gloves and is testing them, though it has not decided whether to deploy them, according to Lt. Lewis Gilmour, a department spokesperson. The El Monte Police Department, in eastern Los Angeles County, is testing two gloves. “We’re waiting to see what others do,” Lt. Aram Choe, watch commander at the department, told UPI. “And waiting to see what happens in Sacramento.”
The gloves are manufactured by Compliant Technologies, based in Lexington, Ky. The bill’s prohibition runs through 2030.