Immigration and Customs Enforcement may soon be equipped with electroshock gloves to subdue detainees — but the proposal has already drawn legal threats.
In a press conference on Wednesday, leaders in New York State vowed any use of this weapon in their jurisdiction will be met with swift legal retribution.
"That appears to me on its face to be a violation of civil rights," New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, told reporters — a statement that state Attorney General Letitia James swiftly backed up.
"It appears to be in violation of a number of laws — we are reviewing right now the [Request for Funds]," said James, a frequent legal opponent of Trump who has been directly targeted for prosecution by his administration. "In the event that a New Yorker is injured as a result of these gloves, obviously there will be a private right of action as well as action from the state of New York."
The Trump administration's escalation of deportation quotas, and periodic federal takeovers of liberal cities where protests against ICE have flared up, have resulted in efforts at the state level to rein in abuses of federal agents.
Already, the state of New York passed a law that sought to prohibit ICE agents from concealing their faces — a tactic opponents describe as intimidation and the Department of Homeland Security insists is necessary to protect agents from reprisal.
A federal judge voided this law earlier in the month, saying states cannot dictate the policies of federal law enforcement in their borders.