Is your local hospital, police department, or county jail using the G.L.O.V.E.?
Compliant Technologies pitches its products to hospitals and correctional facilities. The company "recommends" that its products are not used on "small children."
This week, the Associated Press broke the news that ICE is planning to buy gloves that “can deliver painful electric shocks intended to gain compliance from combative individuals.” The AP’s Ryan J. Foley reports:
The devices are known as the G.L.O.V.E., which stands for Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter, and are manufactured by Compliant Technologies LLC of Lexington, Kentucky.
Alarmingly, the company’s products already appear to be widely used against incarcerated community members and others. In a Facebook post from December, the company boasts that it is “officially in over 600 agencies.”
Compliant Technologies has not published a list of its clients, but a list of “References”, with names and affiliations, is posted on its website. The references include several individuals who are affiliated with medical centers, such as Vanderbilt University Medical Center and UNC Wayne Memorial Hospital.
“This same technology can be a game-changer in healthcare settings, helping to safely manage agitated or combative patients, protecting staff, which fosters a safer and more controlled environment,” the website states.
In an Instagram post from October, the company makes a pitch to hospitals:
These products have been ideal in hospital settings to help protect other patients and nursing staff … The products do not penetrate or burn skin, leaving less work for healthcare staff to handle. They also have minimal effect on heart rates and the central nervous system.
A full list of the company’s “References” can be found on this spreadsheet and on its website. I am in the process of contacting each reference to ask if their facility uses the G.L.O.V.E. or any other products manufactured by Compliant Technologies.
In another Instagram post, a volunteer participates in a demonstration of the G.L.O.V.E. After he is shocked, he falls to the floor and says, “I’ll comply any time.” The caption is as disturbing as the video:
Whether the fight is on the streets, in a correctional facility, or a medical facility CD3 helps gain compliance with combative individuals with much lower risk for injuries.
In addition to medical centers, the list of “References” includes individuals affiliated with jails and sheriff’s offices, including:
Bushkill Township PD, PA
Iowa County Sheriff's Office, WI
Kentucky River Regional Jail, KY
Newport News Sheriff's Office, VA
Osceola County Corrections, FL
Washington County Correctional Facility, PA
Compliant Technologies manufactures a vest and arm and leg bands that use “the same technology as our flagship product the G.L.O.V.E.” In its user manual for the G.L.O.V.E., it states that “CD3s [Conductive Distraction and De-escalation Device] may increase the affects that can cause sudden death.”
The company “recommends,” but does not prohibit, the use of its devices on:
• The elderly
• Small children
• Pregnant women
• The severely handicapped
Apparently, not-so-small children are fair game.
Um… Eric Estrada?
