Outside Washington, D.C.’s Union Station, the sight of uniformed troops standing next to armored vehicles has become a new normal. Alongside the city’s iconic yellow taxis, National Guard soldiers, FBI agents, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers now greet commuters as they step off their trains. This striking image marks President Donald Trump’s latest effort to tackle what he’s called a “crime emergency” in the nation’s capital, a move that’s sent ripples through city government, the justice system, and D.C.’s neighborhoods.
On August 11, 2025, President Trump invoked a provision of the 1973 D.C. Home Rule Act, federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) for 30 days and deploying hundreds of federal agents and National Guard troops. Framing the move as a necessary crackdown on out-of-control crime, Trump’s administration has taken a hands-on approach—one that’s drawn both praise and protest from city officials and residents alike.
According to the BBC, the impact of this federal surge has been immediate and measurable. From August 12 to August 26, MPD recorded 75 violent crimes—a 23% drop compared to the previous two weeks. Property crimes, including burglary and vehicle theft, also fell by about a quarter during the same period. The number of carjackings, in particular, plummeted by an astonishing 87% compared to the same period last year, a statistic repeatedly highlighted by both President Trump and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.
“The difference between this 20-day period of this federal surge and last year represents an 87% reduction in carjackings,” Bowser told reporters at a recent press conference, as reported by HuffPost and Courthouse News. She added, “We greatly appreciate the surge of officers that enhance what MPD has been able to do in this city.”
Federal authorities have been quick to tout their results. The White House claims more than 1,100 arrests and the seizure of 120 illegal firearms since the operation began. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi posted a daily tally of arrests, and the MPD confirmed 1,048 arrests from August 11 to August 25. The Office of the U.S. Attorney General for D.C., Jeanine Pirro, reported that 88% of these arrests led to charges being filed—a figure that underscores the scale of the effort, but also raises questions about the long-term effects on the city’s justice system.
Yet not everyone is convinced that the crackdown is the panacea Trump claims. Criminologists, as cited by the BBC, caution against using arrest numbers as the sole measure of success. “Reporting [of crime] always lags so some of that decline is likely artificial. You probably need six weeks or so for incident-based reporting to catch up and make a comparison of the most recent period,” U.S. crime analyst Jeff Asher explained. Even when arrests lead to charges, prosecutions can falter or result in acquittals.
The surge’s effects have also rippled through D.C.’s court system. Magistrate Judge Zia M. Faruqui remarked from the bench that the criminal justice system “was not keeping up” with the dramatic rise in federal prosecutions. In some cases, defendants arrested for offenses that would normally be handled by lower courts are now facing federal charges, which often carry stiffer penalties. Judge Faruqui warned, “If there’s going to be a surge in prosecutions there has to be a surge in the protection of human dignity.”
Defense attorneys have voiced concerns about the fairness of the process. Assistant Federal Defender Tezira Abe argued in court that her client, Darious Phillips, was “very obviously a victim of this incursion in D.C. of federal agents.” Phillips, arrested on a gun charge, remained in detention five days later, with the judge expressing concern that he was on suicide watch and had not yet had the opportunity to enter a plea.
To handle the mounting caseload, the Pentagon has sent 20 military lawyers from its Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in D.C. President Trump also signed a new executive order calling for the hiring of additional civilian prosecutors. Attorney General Pirro has argued that “tougher sentences need to go hand in hand with the crackdown on crime,” and in a public statement, she condemned Judge Faruqui’s comments, accusing him of being soft on gun crime.
The numbers tell a mixed story. While the city did experience a two-week stretch without a reported homicide—a trend President Trump claimed was unprecedented—police data shows that similar homicide-free periods occurred earlier this year. On August 25, Trump asserted there had been “no murders in 11 days,” which was accurate at the time, but a homicide was reported on August 26, ending the streak.
The federal takeover, however, has not been without controversy. Many D.C. residents and lawmakers have criticized what they see as an unjust occupation of a city with limited political representation. Protests have erupted, particularly in historically Black neighborhoods such as U Street, where residents have decried the heavy federal presence and demanded greater autonomy for the district. As Courthouse News reported, demonstrators have even shadowed federal agents on patrol, underscoring the tension between law enforcement and the communities they serve.
Mayor Bowser has walked a careful line, publicly acknowledging the positive impact of the federal surge on crime—especially carjackings—while criticizing specific aspects of the operation. “We know having masked ICE agents in the community has not worked, and National Guards from other states has not been an efficient use of those resources,” she said, as reported by HuffPost. Bowser also noted that the reduction in carjackings was part of a longer-term trend, with city administrator Kevin Donahue adding, “We already had good momentum coming into the federal surge, and it made it better.”
Looking ahead, the future of federal control remains uncertain. Trump has stated his intention to seek extensions beyond the 30-day legal limit, suggesting he could declare a “national emergency” to secure unilateral authority. “We’re going to be asking for extensions on that,” he said. “Long-term extensions, because you can’t have 30 days.” Congressional Democrats have introduced measures to prevent an extension, but with Republicans holding the majority, their success remains doubtful.
Mayor Bowser, for her part, has not yet pressed the president for assurances about ending the takeover. “That was not something that I discussed with the president, but with Attorney General Bondi, and we will continue to work on how our emergency operations center and the federal task force can work together,” she explained at a recent news conference. Yet she also indicated the city would be ready to “take advantage of additional federal officers” once the current period expires.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration continues to expand its influence in the capital. The U.S. Department of Transportation announced it would take over Union Station from Amtrak, and Trump signed an executive order expanding the National Guard’s law enforcement role in D.C. and other cities.
As the September 11 deadline for the federal takeover approaches, D.C. finds itself at a crossroads. The city’s crime statistics have improved, but the price of that progress—measured in strained courts, civil liberties concerns, and political friction—remains hotly debated. Whether the federal presence will become a lasting fixture or a brief chapter in the capital’s history is a question that, for now, remains unanswered.
