President Donald Trump, who was convicted of 34 felony counts and found legally liable for sexual abuse and defamation, announced Monday that he is placing Washington D.C.’s police department under federal control and deploying National Guard troops to the nation’s capital, claiming the city faces a “crime emergency” despite official data showing violent crime has reached historic lows.

Trump invoked Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, a provision that allows the president to take control of D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department during “special conditions of an emergency nature”. Attorney General Pam Bondi will now oversee the police force, while 800 National Guard troops will be deployed to city streets.

The federal takeover can last up to 48 hours without congressional notification, or up to 30 days after Trump notifies Congress. Any extension beyond 30 days would require a joint resolution from both chambers of Congress.

Trump’s claims about rampant crime in D.C. directly contradict official police data and federal crime statistics. According to the Metropolitan Police Department, violent crime in Washington D.C. is down 26% in 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. Homicides have decreased by 12%, robberies by 28%, and assaults with dangerous weapons by 20%.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia reported in January that violent crime in D.C. reached a 30-year low in 2024, falling 35% from 2023 levels. This included a 32% drop in homicides, 39% decrease in robberies, and 53% reduction in armed carjackings.

Trump used statistics from 2023, not current data, to justify his claims.

The attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, under Trump’s administration and direction, is widely considered the biggest crime spree in recent American history. Thousands of supporters of then-President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol, resulting in five deaths, injuries to over 140 law enforcement officers, and more than $2.9million in property damage. More than 1,575 people were charged with federal crimes related to the attack, over 1,270 individuals were convicted.

On January 20, 2025, Donald Trump, on his first day of his second term, granted blanket clemency to nearly every person convicted, charged, or set to face trial for January 6 offenses. Since the mass pardons granted to January 6 Capitol riot defendants in January 2025, there has been a notable pattern of additional criminal activity among some of the released individuals. Several pardoned rioters have been charged with violent crimes, including: assault and battery, conspiracy to murder, domestic abuse crimes, narcotics distribution, drunk driving causing death, child sexual assault, possession of child pornography, and sending sexually explicit messages with minors.

The federal intervention in D.C. follows an August 3 incident where Edward Coristine, a 19-year-old former Department of Government Efficiency staffer, was assaulted during an attempted carjacking by two 15-year-olds. Trump used this incident to justify his broader claims about D.C.’s safety crisis.

Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers were patrolling the vicinity and observed the assault as it was in progress. As police exited their cruiser and approached the scene, the assailants fled on foot. Officers managed to apprehend two suspects (a 15-year-old male and a 15-year-old female, both from Hyattsville, Maryland) who were later positively identified by Coristine and his companion. These two juveniles were arrested and charged with unarmed carjacking. Police immediately launched an investigation to find the remaining members of the group, releasing photographs of persons of interest and calling on the public for assistance.

Trump has deployed approximately 500 federal law enforcement officers throughout the capital, including more than 100 FBI agents and 40 Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents. The Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and U.S. Marshals Service are also contributing personnel.

The president hinted that similar federal takeovers could extend to other Democratic-controlled cities. “This will go further. We’re starting very strongly with D.C.,” Trump said, mentioning New York City, Baltimore, and Oakland as potential targets.

The president does not have comparable authority to take control of local police forces in states or other cities, such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Baltimore. Local police departments in states are governed by state and municipal law, not federal law. The president’s powers over city or state police are restrained by the Posse Comitatus Act (1878), which prohibits the use of federal military (including National Guard troops, unless federalized by extreme measures) for domestic law enforcement. The president can sometimes deploy federal law enforcement agents to cities for “federal purposes” (such as protecting federal property, enforcing federal law, or quelling insurrection), and can request or authorize militarization in very rare circumstances.

Trump’s authoritarian pose extended throughout the Aug. 11 news conference.

Dehumanizing Rhetoric About Populations
Trump used extremely inflammatory language to describe various groups, calling them “drugged out Maniacs,” “roving mobs of wild youth,” and “bloodthirsty criminals”. He also stated about some individuals: “They will never be an asset to society. I don’t care. I know we all want to say, Oh, they’re going to be rehabbed. It’s not going to be rehabbed.”

Elimination of “Slums”
Trump announced plans to “get rid of the slums” where people live, acknowledging it’s “not politically correct” but stating they would proceed anyway. This language suggests forced displacement without clear alternative housing solutions.

Endorsement of Police Violence
Trump made concerning statements about police conduct, saying: “they love to spit in the face of the police… I said, You tell them, You spit and we hit, and they can hit real hard”. He also told law enforcement they are now “allowed to do whatever the hell they want.”

Approval of Forceful Tactics
When discussing confrontations with protesters, Trump stated: “They fought back against law enforcement… they fight back until you knock the hell out of them, because it’s the only language they understand.”

Attacks on Democratic Leaders
Trump made personal attacks on various Democratic officials, calling Chicago’s mayor “totally incompetent” and Illinois Governor Pritzker “a gross, incompetent guy thrown out of the family business”. He also attacked Los Angeles leadership following recent wildfire disasters.

Later in the day, Pritzker said, “There is a law on the books, confirmed by the Constitution, called posse comitatus. And it means that the federal government does not have a right to send soldiers into American cities for the purpose of, well, for any purpose really, but specifically to fight crime, let’s say. And that is what he’s suggesting that he will do violate that law. It’s not surprising to me that he suggests violating the law. He’s done it many times and been convicted of it 34 times. And so I would just say he has absolutely no right and no legal ability to send troops into the city of Chicago, and so I reject that notion.”