Agreement finalized following lawsuit by Washington against U.S. President Trump over police takeover
In a historic court hearing on August 15, Judge Ana Reyes presided over a case that questioned the legality of the U.S. Justice Department's attempt to take control of the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
The controversy began in 2025 when President Trump declared a crime emergency in Washington D.C., invoking Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act (1973) and related statutes. This move enabled him to federalize the D.C. police temporarily, deploying approximately 2,000 National Guardsmen and hundreds of federal law enforcement officers to the city.
The administration aimed to replace the police chief with a federal official and mobilized various federal agencies, including the FBI and DHS, on city streets. However, the justification for this takeover was met with contesting facts and fierce opposition from local officials.
Mayor Bowser and Police Chief Pamela Smith denied the emergency justification, accusing the Justice Department of political motivation. They argued that violent crime was "at its lowest level in 30 years," contradicting the federal portrayal. As a result, the city filed a lawsuit against the Attorney General to block the takeover, leading to a court order that rescinded the removal of the police chief, who retained control of the MPD.
The takeover raised important constitutional and statutory issues. The District of Columbia Home Rule Act grants the city limited self-governance, including control of its police. The President's emergency declaration and federalization of city police were challenged for lack of a true "emergency" as violent crime was not surging. The invocation of National Guard troops and federal agents also raised potential Posse Comitatus Act concerns.
Legal experts highlighted risks to local governance, public safety, and the precedent of federalizing an elected local police force without clear congressional authorization. The Justice Department also opened an investigation into allegations that D.C. police officials falsified crime data to underreport crime levels, adding tension to the dispute but not conclusively establishing wrongdoing or legal violations.
Despite the federal takeover, residents of Washington D.C. rejected Trump's depiction of the city as "totally false." Larry Janezich, an 81-year-old resident, stated that Trump's statements were "obviously promulgated on his media to justify an unwarranted exercise of federal power."
Trump has expressed a desire to tackle homeless encampments and move those sleeping in public "FAR from the Capital." Washington is ranked 15th on a list of major U.S. cities by homeless population, according to government statistics from last year.
The court hearing on August 15 saw Judge Reyes urging both sides to work out a solution. An agreement was reached stating that the MPD is under the chief of police appointed by the mayor. The details of the agreement include Terry Cole being appointed as an "emergency" police commissioner, who will give directives through the mayor's office, not directly to MPD individuals.
As the legal and political conflict over federal intervention remains unresolved, the D.C. government has successfully contested parts of the takeover, preserving local control of the police department. The broader implications of this case continue to be debated as the nation grapples with questions of federal power versus local autonomy.
- The ongoing legal dispute over federal control of the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) has raised important questions regarding policy-and-legislation and the boundaries of federal power.
- The court hearing on August 15 brought forth discussions on war-and-conflicts and potential Posse Comitatus Act concerns, given the deployment of National Guard troops and federal agents in the city.
- General-news outlets have reported fierce opposition from local officials like Mayor Bowser and Police Chief Pamela Smith, who argue against the federal takeover on grounds of health, politics, and their city's unique self-governance dictated by the District of Columbia Home Rule Act.
- News channels have covered the controversy surrounding crime-and-justice in Washington D.C., with motor-mouth journalist Jack Anderson delving into allegations of police falsifying crime data and President Trump's controversial statements on the homeless population.
- Entertainment personalities, such as Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers, have weighed in on the issue by satirizing President Trump's attempts to exert control over the city, humorously touching on severity of homeless encampments in comparison to its actual ranking.
