The ban takes effect next year and stays on the books until 2030. It comes weeks after US Immigration and Customs Enforcement moved to equip its officers with the gloves, which are built to force compliance from combative individuals during arrests or detentions. Last month, the agency signed a contract worth nearly $17 million to buy 6,000 pairs.
Governor Gavin Newsom signed the bill and didn't hold back on his reasoning. "Trump has put his political interests above the health, safety and livelihood of American families," he said in a statement announcing the law.
The measure puts California directly at odds with a federal agency's equipment plans, something states rarely attempt on this scale. Officers in the state, whether they work for a police department, the highway patrol or a federal agency operating within California, will be barred from using the shock gloves once the law kicks in. ICE's contract stands regardless, but any gear that ends up in California hands becomes legally off limits.
The clash sets up a five-year window where one state has outlawed a tool the federal government wants to use.