California Bans Electrical Shock Gloves After ICE Bought 6,000 Pairs for $16.7 Million; DHS Says It 'Will Not Abide'

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, banning law enforcement officers in the state from using electrical shock gloves — a pain-compliance device that functions like a taser at lower voltage — with the ban taking effect in 2027. ICE had purchased approximately 6,000 pairs of the gloves for $16.7 million. A DHS spokesperson responded that the agency “will not abide” by the state prohibition, invoking the Supremacy Clause and arguing California’s “sanctuary politicians” cannot control federal law enforcement — an explicit, on-the-record refusal to comply rather than an open legal question.

The bill is AB 2760 (Assemblymember Dr. LaShae Sharp-Collins, D-San Diego), enacted as Chapter 749, Statutes of 2026, approved by the Governor and filed with the Secretary of State on September 29, 2026 — confirmed directly from the chaptered bill text at California Legislative Information (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov). It adds Government Code § 7286.1, a sunset provision barring a “law enforcement agency” — defined to include “any federal law enforcement agency,” with no carve-out — from using or state-funding a “wearable electroshock device” anywhere in California; the section is scheduled to repeal January 1, 2030.

This is the state-level response to a procurement canon already flagged: DHS published its notice to buy $10-20 million in the gloves on August 10, 2026, when the manufacturer’s own safety warnings described a risk of “sudden death” (2026-08-10–ice-solicits-20m-compliant-technologies-electric-shock-gloves-sudden-death-warning) — a solicitation canon placed alongside ICE’s Boston Dynamics SPOT robot purchase two weeks later as the second of what it called a “pain-and-presence procurement” pattern (2026-08-27–ice-solicits-boston-dynamics-spot-robots-fort-benning). DHS went on to sign the $16,700,640 award itself on August 26, 2026 (2026-08-26–ice-awards-16-7m-compliant-technologies-shock-glove-contract), sixteen days after the solicitation. California’s ban, and DHS’s stated refusal to comply with it, is the first documented instance of a state moving to restrict the specific device ICE had just purchased — and of DHS declaring in advance it will not recognize the restriction inside the state.