A bill temporarily prohibiting law enforcement agencies from using electric shock gloves in California is awaiting action by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Assembly Bill (AB) 2760, authored by Assemblymember LaShae Sharp-Collins (D-San Diego), passed the Senate 29-9 on Aug. 31. The Assembly concurred in Senate amendments the same day on a 55-16 vote.
The bill would prohibit state, local and federal law enforcement agencies from using wearable electroshock devices in California until Jan. 1, 2030. It would also bar agencies from using state funds to purchase the devices and require them to update their use-of-force policies accordingly.
Traditional handheld devices, including tasers and stun guns, are exempt.
Newsom has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto the bill. If he takes no action, it will become law without his signature.
Sharp-Collins introduced the measure after reviewing information indicating that the devices could cause serious injury or death if used without adequate safeguards and training.
“AB 2760 draws a line that public safety technology must be proven safe and accountable before it is employed. Not after someone is killed or injured,” said Sharp-Collins, a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC).
“Our commitment is to protect our communities, especially the most vulnerable. That is what AB 2760 is about and that is what AB 2760 will do,” Sharp-Collins told her colleagues.
The device at the center of the debate is known as the G.L.O.V.E., an acronym for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement awarded a $16.7 million contract for 6,000 pairs of the gloves, which are designed to deliver an electric shock through an officer’s hand.
For most of the legislative session, AB 2760 addressed an unrelated subject. The original proposal would have authorized county boards of supervisors to establish inspectors general to oversee agencies such as animal control departments and county probation offices.
On Aug. 21, Sharp-Collins used a legislative procedure known as “gut and amend” to replace the bill’s original language with provisions restricting wearable electroshock devices. The revised measure was fast-tracked during the closing days of the session.
The initial version sought a broader prohibition, but it was revised following opposition from law enforcement organizations. The final language establishes a temporary moratorium and directs the California Department of Justice to study the devices’ safety and community effects. The department must report its findings and recommend standards and safeguards to the Legislature by Jan. 1, 2029.
“AB 2760 emerged as a last-minute gut-and-amend prohibiting wearable electroshock devices. PORAC immediately engaged and secured amendments protecting traditional handheld/Taser devices, replacing the prohibition with a three-year moratorium and requiring a DOJ study,” the Peace Officers Research Association of California stated on its website.
During the Assembly debate, Assemblymember Rhodesia Ransom (D-Stockton), also a CLBC member, thanked law enforcement representatives for helping negotiate the amendments.
“This is something new to us (and) it’s something that absolutely should be studied,” Ransom said. “I appreciate law enforcement for agreeing to work with the legislature to figure out if this is an appropriate tool to be used.”
Neither the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department nor the Los Angeles Police Department has reported using electric shock gloves. However, the Santa Monica and El Monte police departments have obtained devices for testing.
