LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Police Department is once again facing scrutiny regarding its use of “less lethal” weapons to control crowds, after peaceful protesters say they were hit and left with lifelong injuries from police projectiles.

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The LAPD is once again facing scrutiny regarding its use of “less lethal” weapons to control crowds

The complaints come even after a U.S. District Court judge in January held the city in contempt of court and banned the department from using less lethal 40 mm launchers to clear crowds

At a single “No Kings” protest in June, LAPD documents show officers fired nearly 998 foam projectiles into the crowd, recording six injuries with nearly 600 officers involved

Last week, a jury delivered an $11.7 million verdict in favor of Isaac Castellanos, a college student who was blinded in one eye by an LAPD projectile following the Dodger’s 2020 World Series win

The complaints come even after a U.S. District Court judge in January held the city in contempt of court and banned the department from using less lethal 40 mm launchers to clear crowds, citing eight incidents where journalists and peaceful protesters were hit.

The city of Los Angeles is already facing numerous lawsuits, accusing the LAPD of shooting peaceful protesters and journalists with less-lethal projectiles. At a single “No Kings” protest in June, LAPD documents show officers fired nearly 998 foam projectiles into the crowd, recording six injuries with nearly 600 officers involved.

Just weeks after the judge’s order, a new, less lethal weapon began raising similar concerns.

On Jan. 30, Jasmin Lomas said she was holding her cellphone and snapping a picture at an anti-ICE protest in downtown Los Angeles when she was suddenly hit in the face with a paint-filled munition. Later at the hospital, doctors removed shards of metal and glass from her sinuses. A few centimeters higher, she could have lost her eye.

“I still feel the tension,” said Lomas, who plans to file a claim against the city, alleging she was hit by a new kind of less-lethal weapon used by the LAPD: the FN 303.

LAPD declined to answer questions about its response to the Jan. 30 protest, citing pending litigation, but Chief Jim McDonnell told the Police Commission that on Feb. 3 a protester who reported an eye injury may have been hit by Homeland Security, not his department.

“An injury report was completed, and the information was forwarded to the DHS commander for review,” McDonnell said.

Weeks later, the LAPD posted an internal memo to its website confirming officers used the FN 303 the night Lomas was hit, firing off 29 projectiles. LA Taco investigative reporter Lexis Olivier-Rey captured video of officers from LAPD’s Metro Division using the less-lethal weapon at the protest. His backpack was also marked with the telltale yellow paint from an FN 303 projectile.

Last week, a jury delivered an $11.7 million verdict in favor of Isaac Castellanos, a college student who was blinded in one eye by an LAPD projectile following the Dodger’s 2020 World Series win. Los Angeles taxpayers ultimately foot the bill for settlements stemming from police use-of-force cases.