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LAPD Replaces ‘Less-Lethal’ Gun ‘Known To Maim People’ With Another ‘Less-Lethal’ Gun Capable Of Doing The Exact Same Thing

“Since we don't have access to the [40mm launcher], the FN303 is an alternative option,” LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said. “[And] we're looking at other options that are available as well on the field.”

12:23 PM PST on February 10, 2026

A Los Angeles police officer stands facing a red, white, and blue mural by the artist Barbara Kruger. The mural asks nine questions: “Who is beyond the law?”, “Who is bought and sold?”, “Who is free to choose?” “Who does the time?”, “Who follows orders?”, “Who Salutes longest?”, “Who prays loudest?”, “Who dies first?” and “Who laughs last?”.

A Los Angeles police officer stands facing Barbara Kruger’s iconic untitled mural outside of the MOCA at the Geffen Contemporary in Little Tokyo. Photo by Lexis-Olivier Ray for L.A. TACO.

After a federal judge banned the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) from using 40mm foam projectile launchers in crowd-control settings, the LAPD dug into their seemingly endless arsenal of so-called “less-lethal” weapons and replaced the 40mm with another “less-lethal” launcher known to seriously injure people: the Fabrique Nationale de Herstal 303 (FN303).

The FN303 shoots high-speed .68 caliber projectiles containing small pieces of metal and sometimes chemical irritants or paint that cannot be washed off. The rounds are ​​designed to cause a “dissuasive level of pain,” according to the weapons manufacturer, while the paint allows law enforcement to mark certain people for arrest or questioning later.

In 2004, a woman in Boston died after being shot with an FN303.

“Since we don't have access to the [40mm launcher], the FN303 is an alternative option,” LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell admitted during a Board of Police Commissioners meeting last Tuesday. “[And] we're looking at other options that are available as well on the field.”

At around 6 p.m.on Friday, January 30, heavily-armed Los Angeles police responded to a protest outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC), in what was the first major test of the judge’s order banning the use of the 40mm launchers.