California lawmakers send shock glove ban to Gavin Newsom

The state is among the first to ban the controversial devices.

SACRAMENTO, California — Shock gloves used by law enforcement would be banned in California through 2030 under a bill lawmakers passed to Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday following reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s plans to use the devices.

The legislation was an eleventh-hour proposal from LaShae Sharp-Collins, a San Diego Democrat, who argued in a floor speech ahead of the vote Monday that “public safety technology must be proven safe and accountable before it is deployed, not after someone is killed or seriously injured.”

One Republican critic accused the lawmaker of pushing through a “rush job” on a controversial issue, while Sharp-Collins called it a response to the untested technology’s rapid spread.

Opponents argued that banning tools of “less than lethal force” could leave law enforcement officers no choice but to resort to deadly weapons. Democratic legislators warned of the danger of deploying the gloves against vulnerable communities, flagging health concerns that the technology could exacerbate if deployed, including increased heart rates, adrenaline and blood pressure. Sharp-Collins said the legislation would not ban tasers or other non-lethal devices, including batons and bean bag rounds.

“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,” said Mark Gonzalez, a Los Angeles Democrat.

The legislation drew opposition from local police associations looking to use the technology and Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper, a former Democratic state lawmaker whose office already spent $35,000 on the electric shock technology. Cooper paid a visit to the Capitol on Monday, the last day of the legislative session.

The proposal would prohibit law enforcement from using state funds to buy the devices and require the state Department of Justice to conduct a study on the safety and community impacts of the electroshock devices.

Newsom has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto any approved legislation.