The Trump administration was forced to scale back its attempt to federalize the District of Columbia’s police force on Friday after a federal judge expressed skepticism about the legality of placing a federal official in direct control of local law enforcement.
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes, appointed by former President Joe Biden, effectively halted the attempt to replace D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith with Drug Enforcement Administration head Terry Cole as “emergency police commissioner.” The judge gave Attorney General Pam Bondi until 6:30 p.m. Friday to rewrite her controversial directive or face a temporary restraining order.
The Justice Department then backed down from its most aggressive demands, while maintaining federal oversight under President Trump’s declared crime emergency.
According to Metropolitan Police Department data, violent crime dropped 26% in 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, with overall crime down 7%. The Council on Criminal Justice reported that D.C.’s homicide rate fell 19% in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024.
During Friday’s emergency hearing, Judge Reyes made clear her skepticism about the administration’s interpretation of presidential power under the Home Rule Act. The judge noted the contradiction in allowing Trump to personally control the MPD when the Home Rule Act specifically bars direct presidential communication with the department.
After nearly two hours of negotiations, the Trump administration agreed to revise Bondi’s directive.
By Friday evening, Bondi issued a significantly scaled-back directive that abandoned the provision giving Cole full control over the MPD. The new Attorney General Order No. 6372-2025 instead listed specific “services” that the mayor must provide, with Cole serving only as the Attorney General’s designee to oversee those limited functions.
The revised order still requires the Metropolitan Police Department to:
- Assist with enforcing federal immigration law
- Help locate and apprehend undocumented immigrants
- Comply with federal database requests and information sharing
- Enforce D.C. laws against unlawful occupancy of public spaces
However, it no longer directly replaces Chief Smith or requires all MPD orders to go through Cole.
The case marks the first time a federal judge has been asked to interpret Section 740 of the Home Rule Act since Congress passed the legislation in 1973.
