By MES Dispatch staff
The Briefing
• A federal judge barred the Los Angeles Police Department from using 40mm less-lethal launchers for crowd control.
• The order followed a contempt finding that LAPD violated prior court-imposed restrictions during protests.
• LAPD issued an immediate department-wide moratorium on the use of the weapons for crowd control.
• The restriction applies only to crowd management operations, not other authorized law enforcement uses.
• The ruling was issued Wednesday in Los Angeles federal court.
(LOS ANGELES, CA —) A federal judge on Wednesday barred the Los Angeles Police Department from deploying 40mm less-lethal launchers for crowd control, citing violations of earlier court restrictions during protest responses.
Carlin Stiehl/TNS
U.S. District Judge Consuelo B. Marshall issued the order after finding the department in contempt for failing to comply with a preliminary injunction that limited how and when the weapons could be used. The injunction, issued in 2021, required specific training standards, warnings to crowds and restrictions on targeting.
Attorneys representing Black Lives Matter-Los Angeles filed the contempt motion, alleging LAPD officers improperly deployed the launchers during demonstrations in 2023 and 2024. The court determined the department failed to adequately enforce compliance with the prior order.
Following the ruling, LAPD leadership circulated an internal memo directing officers to immediately stop using 40mm launchers for crowd control operations. The memo instructed personnel to seek guidance from the department’s legal affairs and risk management divisions.
The court order applies only to crowd control situations and does not prohibit the use of 40mm launchers in other authorized law enforcement contexts. The investigation into compliance with the injunction remains ongoing.