Omaha school district bans police use of electric shock gloves

Matthew Ray, superintendent of Omaha Public Schools, formally requested that school resource officers no longer employ electric shock gloves, a request the city’s mayor confirmed this week. Ray explained in a public letter that he became aware of the devices only a week earlier, just before the school year began. The move comes after an AP investigation linked the gloves to an ICE procurement plan and after about 30 community members spoke out against the practice at a recent board meeting.

Mayor John Ewing Jr. noted that police have agreed to the district’s decision, though officers will retain other less-lethal tools. Most of the department’s 34 school resource officers had been trained on the gloves, which were used twice during the 2025-2026 school year. The gloves, manufactured by Compliant Technologies LLC for roughly $66,000, deliver a painful shock when pressed against skin for up to 15 seconds.