By Connor Juracek, Guest Writer 

The Omaha Police Department (OPD) came under fire this month after it was reported that several public middle and high school resource officers possessed and deployed electric shock gloves on students.  

This was announced shortly after it was revealed that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was spending $20 million on electric shock gloves, also known as G.L.O.V.E. (Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter). OPD spent nearly $60,000 in May 2025 for the acquisition of 40 shock gloves. 

In a demonstration video, OPD officer Jason Civitanov utilizes the glove on another officer. The video shows the officer placing his hand on the other officer’s arm, which was gripping a chair with minimal force, and the officer moving his hand away quickly without any expression of physical pain. 

A demonstration video by the device’s manufacturer, Compliant Technologies, shows an adult male officer being shocked by the glove before falling to the ground yelling in pain.  

Omaha Mayor John Ewing Jr. and OPD Police Chief Todd Schmaderer released a joint statement regarding the gloves. They stated that most of the department’s resource officers were trained and authorized to deploy the electric shock gloves on students. Additionally, they stated that the shock glove devices are, “the safest use-of-force option in the rare times when it is used.” 

Outrage grew when it was revealed that gloves were utilized twice in the 2025-26 school year. The first deployment was on a high school student fleeing a fight, and the second was on a middle school student in a special education program after the student became violent.  

Community members spoke about the usage of electric shock gloves in schools during a recent Omaha School Board meeting. Speakers shared concerns about officers using excessive and unnecessary force on students, noting the known impact on adults would be magnified on minors. 

Resource Officers in Omaha Public Schools are armed with a service weapon, taser, baton and pepper spray. The electric shock glove is intended to be another tool the officers can use to de-escalate a situation.  

Each glove delivers shocks of 324 to 362 volts. Tasers deliver shocks of 1,200 to 1,500 volts. The shock delivered by the device is intended to cause pain to force compliance. Officers must make physical contact with skin to deliver a shock and are instructed to maintain contact for up to 15 seconds. 

In response to the immense backlash, Omaha Public Schools Superintendent Matthew Ray asked the Omaha Police Department to stop using the shock gloves in schools, to which they agreed. The Bellevue Police Department declined the request.  

Many feel the officers should be adequately equipped, but also that a student resource officer receiving an additional weapon is not necessarily a net positive.